Davenport v Henin-hardenne As It Happened

Henin-Hardenne wins 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 Davenport for once buggers up the return on Henin-Hardenne’s first serve, and she slings a long forehand in for good measure on the second. Justine clearly doesn’t like the easy route though, double-faulting to keep things interesting. One whipped backhand = two match points: and another long forehand from Davenport converts the first. Justine Henin-Hardenne makes the semis despite an erratic performance. She faces a similarly off-colour Sharapova in that match. Should be interesting - you’ll be able to follow that on Guardian Unlimited [plug, plug].

Third set [6-2, 2-6] Davenport 3* - 5 Henin-Hardenne A wide backhand from Davenport for 0-15... an easy smash for Henin-Hardenne for 0-30... pfffwp. There goes the tension as HH’s forehand sails wide. And that’ll be 30-30 with a lovely forehand from Lindsay. It’ll be down to the Belgian hold if she wants to take this set.

Third set [6-2, 2-6] Davenport 2 - 5* Henin-Hardenne Stunning, whipped forehand from Henin-Hardenne, I actually made a noise and now the rest of the office is looking at me the way I look at people who sing on the bus. I feel quite the twit. But what a shot. She’s in danger of being broken straight back though, her serve letting her down again to see Davenport to 15-30. Rescued with one of those lovely backhands she’s known for, that’s more like it. But we’re back to deuce again kids: fabulous serve - a fourth ace - hands HH the advantage... and a fifth ace makes it 5-2.

Third set [6-2, 2-6] Davenport 2* - 4 Henin-Hardenne Henin takes the initiative by keeping Davenport skipping to and fro across the baseline, but you can’t legislate for a dead straight Davenport forehand down the line. Ah! A superb passing shot from Henin-Hardenne! Two break points! Will she waste them like before? First one: yep. Second one: yep. Third, after nabbing the advantage: yep. Fourth, after bagging the advantage again: finally. Crikey. I’m almost ready for my pension.
"I really hope Henin-Hardenne beats Davenport," says John in an internet cafe in Nairobi. "She always seems to be smiling and has an awesome backhand." You could be in luck if she holds from here, John.

Third set [6-2, 2-6] Davenport 2 - 3* Henin-Hardenne Justine’s halfway to Chokesville now. Lindsay took the first point, so HH opts to send her this way and that in the hope of the ankle winning a few points for her. It didn’t and she has to come back from 0-30. Let’s try the ankle again - bingo! - Lindsay’s limping and it’s 30-30. After a lengthy exchange of the advantage, HH holds.

Third set [6-2, 2-6] Davenport 2* - 2 Henin-Hardenne Clever little drop shot from HH - Lindsay won’t risk her ankle by chasing it. But she probably wasn’t banking on that gorgeous backhand return from Henin off her next serve. Luckily for her, the Belgian overhits two forehands and we’re back at 30-30, before a desperate Justine backhand sets her up for a smash. Oops, foot fault, deuce. Easy hold from there though.

Third set [6-2, 2-6] Davenport 1 - 2* Henin-Hardenne Henin-Hardenne rustles up a second serve to rival most of her firsts today, deep enough to have Davenport in a spin, but the American strikes up a chorus of Anything You Can Do by knocking a backhand right into the corner and out of HH’s reach. And that’s followed by a beautiful backhand return, it dips just before the line and Henin gives up mid-sprint. If she can break now... and she does! Magnificent rally! Game o - ah, I’ve already used that. Damn.

Third set [6-2, 2-6] Davenport 0* - 2 Henin-Hardenne Exquisite cross-court forehand from HH, from outside the tramlines she puts it on a line I doubt she can even see. Lindsay’s showing the first signs of losing her rag, flapping at shots disconsolately - she’s now notched up 30 unforced errors to Henin-Hardenne’s 21, and she’s broken. Gulp.

Third set [6-2, 2-6] Davenport 0 - 1* Henin-Hardenne There were moments in the first set when I doubted we’d see a third, but here we are, and the momentum, what little there is of it, is arguably with Justine Henin-Hardenne. I’ll give you 3-1 that we see the trainer before this match is out. New balls! Lindsay comes up with a peach of a backhand down the line, but it’s another of those long forehands that lets HH hold with relative ease.
"Okay you win," says Mike Cassidy in France. "Turning off the computer and going downstairs to watch the third set. To hell with the deadline." Losing a reader is me winning? I don’t rate my lot in life sometimes.

Davenport won the first set 6 - 2, Henin-Hardenne takes the second 6-2 Davenport was on the brink of an easy hold when Henin-Hardenne mustered a perfect stretching forehand to make things deucy. And she lobs her way to advantage, looks to have won the set with a forehand that somehow slinks into the net, takes advantage again thanks to a long forehand from Davenport (how many times have I said that this morning?), and a double fault wraps up the set.

Davenport 6 - 2, 2 - 5* "How is Davenport’s injury looking?" wonders Stephen Knowles. Well, she’s looking ginger at times but I think she’s confident that as long as she dictates play in the third set, she can last the distance. She didn’t train yesterday though, so who knows. Meanwhile, on court, a hold-your-breath rally sees HH scamper onto an attempted lob and whip a backhand into the body, which Davenport can only wallop wide. She still breaks, however.

Davenport 6 - 2, 1* - 5 Millimetre-perfect backhand from Davenport after a rally she dictated from start to finish, but Henin-Hardenne responds with a similarly well-measured forehand. Two break points... agonizingly close with the first, her backhand return clipping the net and opting to stay on her side, and she surrenders the second by whipping a backhand straight into Lindsay’s racket. Deuce, advantage LD, deuce, Eurosport liken Henin-Hardenne’s ponytail to a squirrel’s tail, advantage HH, and she’ll be serving for the set.

Davenport 6 - 2, 1 - 4* A wide, searching forehand from Henin-Hardenne and we have a limp from Davenport: could that ankle injury be starting to take its toll? She’s certainly opting out of more and more shots, which is coinciding nicely (for the Belgian) with Henin-Hardenne’s improving serves. She rounds things off with a delicious backhand down the line and she should see this set out if she can carry on like this.

Davenport 6 - 2, 1* - 3 Davenport eases into the game with a backhand that drops inside the line and just behind a scampering Henin-Hardenne, but fails to hold to love thanks to another of those sloppy forehands she seems to succumb to. And another. A brilliant, zinging rally ends with a delicately placed drop shot from Henin-Hardenne and deuce, but Davenport closes it out to hold for the first time in this set.

Davenport 6 - 2, 0 - 3* Justine’s found her rhythm, it seems, even if the first serves are still spilling all over the court. She’s finally finding the angles - a piercing cross-court forehand forcing a mistake from the American, before a well-timed backhand sees her to 3-0 in the second set. Who said a porcine American and a small Belgian couldn’t entertain? I’m on the edge of my seat!

Davenport 6 - 2, 0* - 2 Brilliant return from Henin-Hardenne, magnificent, and any other lovely words you can think of. A rare double fault from Davenport hands Justine two break points, the first of which goes smack! into the net with an attempted backhand return. The second isn’t wasted, mind and it’s game on.

Davenport 6 - 2, 0 - 1* Wow! An ace from Henin-Hardenne! She hasn’t held serve yet in this match... and she won’t do if she let’s those double faults creep back in. A long forehand return and another poor forehand volley from Davenport help her over the line.

First set Davenport 6 - 2 Henin-Hardenne threatens, for all of five seconds, to put pressure on the Davenport serve, but flings another backhand out of court, followed by a forehand heading in the same direction. Things improve when she pushes the American wide to the line then sticks a forehand in the opposite direction [like Davenport’s going to chase that], but an ace sees Davenport to the first set.
"Don’t take it personally," says David Allison. "The nation’s Guardian readers all just arrived at our incredibly right-on jobs and are wondering if drinking seven fair trade coffees in a row will make us feel better about third world debt. It’s hard to get involved in a game between a porcine American and small, dull looking Belgian."

Davenport 5 - 2* Henin-Hardenne Still the first serves are flying anywhere but in from Justine, but she’s slowly starting to vary her shots enough to draw a jog from her opponent and Davenport sticks a feeble forehand into the net. Henin-Hardenne fires a corking serve down the middle of the court, but she’s pushed deep past the baseline by Davenport and can’t find a way over the net with her forehand. Another double fault puts Davenport in the frame to serve for the set, and Justine is proper miffed, as they might say, somewhere. Probably.
"About getting no emails," says Marika in South Africa. "You try listening to cricket commentary, keeping up with the tennis and actually get some work done!" Sorry about that, like.

Davenport 4* - 2 Henin-Hardenne Play’s being held up by tardy Aussies... doesn’t put Lindsay off her serve though: she couldn’t have wedged it any deeper into the corner and Henin-Hardenne is helpless. A double fault and then a long forehand helps the Belgian to spy a blinkering light somewhere at the end of the tunnel, and a superb backhand return that Davenport doesn’t even move for hands her two break points. And she takes the first! Things could be more interesting.

Davenport 4 - 1* Henin-Hardenne Gorgeous backhand from Henin-Hardenne, just as we were all wondering when she was going to start pushing Davenport into a trot. Still it’s the American dictating the play though, scattering groundstrokes from one spot, and this could well be set over.

Davenport 3* - 1 Henin-Hardenne Davenport is playing well, her serves are finding the lines, her groundstrokes, much as I prefer a bit of spin, are flying into all the right corners, and frustration is nagging at Henin-Hardenne’s play. Her usually delicate-but-powerful groundstrokes are being slung high, wide and anything but handsome - I was about to say, until she found the most delightful backhand cross-court lob. Doesn’t help her keep things level, mind.

Davenport 2 - 1* Henin-Hardenne Wonderful stuff for the first point, each groundstroke more elegant than the last until Davenport summons a humming forehand straight down the line. Another double fault from Henin-Hardenne presents Davenport with three break points...she looks menacingly over the net... and takes the second just how she likes it - without moving: another double fault.
I’m trying not to take the lack of emails personally, by the way.

Davenport 1* - 1 Henin-Hardenne Davenport isn’t having much joy on the first serve either but Henin-Hardenne fails to take advantage with a wild backhand. Luckily for her Davenport thwacks a simply backhand volley way out of court to see her to 30-30. After letting things slip with another sloppy forehand Henin takes it to deuce with a beauty of a forehand volley over the shoulder and cross court and too far for Davenport to scamper. It looked unlikely, but Henin-Hardenne’s broken straight back.

Davenport 1 - 0* Henin-Hardenne Henin-Hardenne gets us going with a long serve and Davenport duly wallops the weaker second serve to take the first point. The Belgian gets her moving around court to take the second and the third comes her way after a decent rally that she rounds off with a great cross-courter searching for the line. Double fault levels things up again, and she’s pushed to a second serve that Davenport gobbles up to take a break point. The record for the longest rally is in serious danger here: but it’s Davenport coming out on top despite that all-too obvious injury. Henin’ll have to improve her first serve to get anything here.

News Davenport is carrying a crocked left ankle, apparently, but Eurosport are still plumping (sorry, couldn’t resist) for her as favorite. If Henin-Hardenne is on song, I think it’ll be closer that they think, but if she’s not, we all know how average she can look. Davenport beat Henin-Hardenne five times between 1999 and 2002, but she hasn’t beaten her in five meetings since then. Nearly time!

A word of warning I’m having all manner of technical issues here, so I apologise in advance for any expletives you may happen upon. I know, I know, think of the children.

Morning And a very bloody early one at that. Maria Sharapova’s already through to the semis after a scrappy affair against Nadia Petrova, and whoever wins here gets to play her - not normally a good thing but she’s so off-color in Australia I’d say that’s a nice route to the final. I won’t lie, I’d quite like Justine Henin-Hardenne to win. I just like the cut of her jib. Lindsay Davenport is what my mother used to call a "clodhopper". But that probably means she’ll batter the Belgian in about 38 minutes, eh?