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Henin-Hardenne reached her second final earlier in the day with a 6-2 6-3 win over Nadia Petrova of Russia. Pierce was back to her brilliant best in front of 15,000 fans on centre court knocking out Likhovtseva in 58 minutes.
Likhovtseva proved unable to cope with Pierce's superior power and determination. The Florida-based Pierce, who was a teenager when she first reached the final in Paris in 1994, rolled back the years with a merciless display. "I was very strong mentally from the first to the last point," she said. "I played exactly like I had to." Pierce was on top early on, breaking Likhovtseva with a forehand winner in the second game and taking the first set in 32 minutes courtesy of one of many unforced errors from the Russian. The second set was even more one-sided, the 29-year-old Likhovtseva, who had never advanced beyond the third round on her 10 previous visits to Roland Garros, looking nervous and helpless at times. The Canadian-born Pierce, who had a difficult relationship with the French public for years but is now their darling, faces a tough match against 10th seed Henin-Hardenne, who won all their three previous meetings. "I know it will be very hard but I don't want to think about the final yet," said Pierce. |
Afterwards 30-year-old Pierce was shocked by the result, saying: "It's
incredible, I have shocked myself...and I'm so happy."