Martina Hingis and Jennifer Capriati posted quarterfinal victories yesterday as the top two seeds remained on course for a showdown in the final of the $1.2 million Family Circle Cup women's tennis tournament.
Hingis, the world's top-ranked player, survived a first-set scare to snap the 16-match winning streak of seventh seed Amelie Mauresmo of France to advance 7-5 6-2. Capriati, the second seed, struggled in the first set but moved up a gear in the second to overcome unseeded Elena Likhovtseva of Russia 7-5 6-4.
"I felt like even though I was the number one player out there, she was the one who had to move to prove," said Hingis, who defeated Mauresmo in a heated Australian Open final in 1999. "Even though she won three tournaments in a row, she still hasn't beaten any of the top players."
Serving at 5-5 in the first set, Hingis was in trouble as she fell behind 15-40. She rallied to deuce, then faced another breakpoint before winning three straight points for a 6-5 lead. Mauresmo double-faulted on the first point of the 12th game and Hingis closed out the first set with a service break.
Capriati, the fifth-ranked player in the world, had all she could handle in 25-year-old Russian Elena Likhovtseva, who had upset seeded players in her last two matches. Capriati won the first set and Likhovtseva missed a golden opportunity to take a 4-1 lead in the second set but Capriati fought back to close out the match in just under two hours. (PA)
Filed by Sinéad Kissane
