Justine Henin Wins Fourth Title at the Dubai Tennis Championships
Posted by Aaress Lawless on Feb 24, 2007 | Print
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Top seed Justine Henin’s perfect record at the Dubai Duty Free Women’s Open extended today with her fourth title in just five years.
Henin, who skipped the Australian season and only returned to the Tour two weeks ago at Paris, defeated second seed Amelie Mauresmo 6-4, 7-5 in one hour, forty-two minutes.
Even though the final ended in just two sets for Henin, the match was much closer than what the scoreboard implies.
Mauresmo may have lost in two straight sets, but she did keep the pressure on Henin until her final service game, which she gave away to Justine at love with two double-faults.
Justine then held Mauresmo at love for the title on her first championship point.
Henin was sporting her non-traditional black tape job down her right thigh, but if she was having any trouble moving, it was not evident. Mauresmo’s left thigh was also heavily taped, but after competing for the last three weeks in a row, it may have been strapped as more of a precautionary measure.
Henin kept Mauresmo on the move, and her combination shots and net game led her straight to her thirtieth career title.
I was uncertain about the results that we would see from Henin this soon after her separation from her husband Pierre-Yves Hardenne, but any personal demons plaguing her game were gone today in Dubai. Her focus has never been better and her performance was reminiscent of her victory over Amelie in the 2006 WTA Championships final.
Justine will not be resting too long on her laurels - she is now headed to Doha for the Qatar Total Open which begins on Monday.
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