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Switzerland's Patty Schnyder carried the home flag into
the final of the $1.2 million Swisscom Challenge Saturday,
crushing Conchita Martinez 6-0 6-3 in a surprisingly
one-sided semi-final.
Schnyder, 23, will now meet the winner of the second
semi-final between American defending champion Lindsay
Davenport and fourth-seeded Belgian Justine Henin.
To
the delight of a noisy sell-out crowd, Schnyder produced a
near faultless performance as her Spanish opponent
appeared to lose her game plan.
"That was really good for me," said the Swiss. "Maybe now
I will have to look at the points to see what I need to
qualify for the (WTA end-of-season showpiece) Championship
(in Los Angeles).
Playing accurate and sometimes inspired baseline tennis,
the left-handed Schnyder, who is 19th in the world
rankings, gave the 30-year-old Spaniard little chance to
get her game together after taking the early initiative in
the opening set.
She
broke Martinez, ranked 47 in the world, in the second game
and never looked back as her opponent, mixing unforced
errors with frequent and unsuccessful lobs, virtually
collapsed.
Martinez fought back briefly in the second set with an
opening break, but Schnyder answered that with three
breaks of her own to put the match beyond the Martinez
reach.
Schnyder broke to lead 5-3 with a splendid running
forehand pass that left Martinez flat-footed in mid-court
and summed up the contest.
She
won the set, and the match, when she served to 40-love,
but wasted the first two of her three match points before
settling the issue with an ace.
"Mentally, that was actually quite difficult for me," said
Schnyder. "But my coach did a great job in my preparation
and I was very patient, waiting for the right ball every
time. My patience paid off for me."
Schnyder's win was only her second against Martinez in
eight meetings.
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