TENNIS ROUNDUP : Sanchez Vicario Stuns Navratilova in Semifinals

Martina Navratilova will have to wait a little longer for another shot at Steffi Graf.

Graf, the top-ranked women’s player in the world, pounded out a 6-4, 6-2 semifinal victory over Judith Wiesner of Austria on Saturday, but Arantxa Sanchez Vicario of Spain upset second-ranked Navratilova, 6-1, 6-7 (3-7), 6-2, in the semifinals of the $350,000 Citizen Cup at Hamburg, West Germany.

Sanchez Vicario, 18, ranked fourth in the world, wore down Navratilova with a steady baseline game for her first victory in seven matches against her. The match on the red clay surface lasted 2 hours 24 minutes.

“I played very well and I am very happy,” Sanchez Vicario said. “I concentrated very well throughout the match.”

Graf, playing her second tournament after missing three months with a broken right thumb, was visibly upset in the opening set after missing several easy shots.

On set point at 5-4, she uncharacteristically argued a line call that went against her. Graf demanded that referee Georgina Clark be called to the court to settle the issue. The official said the point had to be replayed, and Graf won the point to take the first set.

“I wasn’t happy with the way I was playing in the first set,” Graf said. “I had played my other matches so well, and in this one I couldn’t keep the ball in play.”

But she picked up her game and was able to clinch a victory in 70 minutes.

Graf holds a 6-1 edge against Sanchez Vicario heading into today’s final, but Sanchez Vicario defeated Graf in last year’s French Open. Graf won the last three meetings, including a 6-1, 6-0 victory on clay in Amelia Island, Fla., last month.

“But that court was much faster and everything went exactly right for me that day,” Graf said. “It will probably be more difficult tomorrow. This clay suits her game much better.”

Thomas Muster of Austria defeated Petr Korda of Czechoslovakia, 6-3, 6-1, in the BMW Open at Munich to reach his seventh tournament final of the year.

Karel Novacek of Czechoslovakia won the other semifinal with a 6-1, 2-6, 6-1 victory over Jonas Svensson of Sweden.

Second-seeded Andres Gomez of Ecuador reached the final of a Grand Prix tournament at Madrid with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Martin Jaite of Argentina.

In today’s final, Gomez will play Marc Rosset of Switzerland, who defeated Javier Sanchez Vicario of Spain, 7-5, 2-6, 6-2, in the other semifinal.

Rosset also upset seventh-ranked Emilio Sanchez, Javier’s brother, in the second round.