FRENCH OPEN / OTHER MATCHES : Graf, Pierce to Slug It Out on Clay

Spain’s clay-court specialists continued to exhibit their considerable skills at Roland Garros Stadium on Tuesday as second-seeded Arantxa Sanchez Vicario and No. 3 Conchita Martinez advanced to one of the semifinals of the French Open.

But the match with the most interest in women’s tennis is Thursday’s other semifinal, in which top-ranked Steffi Graf of Germany will face Mary Pierce of France in a matchup of the game’s fiercest hitters.

Sanchez Vicario survived a tough second set and a partisan crowd to defeat Julie Halard of France, 6-1, 7-6 (8-6), and earn a berth against Martinez, who beat Sabine Hack of Germany, 2-6, 6-0, 6-2.

Graf defeated Ines Gorrochategui of Argentina, 6-4, 6-1, and has reached the semifinals of every French Open since 1987, when she won the first of her three titles.

No. 12 Pierce routed Petra Ritter of Austria, 6-0, 6-2, and has lost only six games in five matches. It is the best showing in the French Open during the open era. Andrea Jeager lost eight games to reach the semifinals in 1982, and Chris Evert had five losses at the U.S. Open in 1976, but played only four matches because of a bye.

Pierce, born in Montreal, raised in Florida but playing for France, already is ensured of moving into the top 10 for the first time when the next rankings are released, thereby becoming the first Frenchwoman to do so since Francoise Durr in 1976.

Against Ritter, Pierce won the first seven games before the Austrian finally held serve. Ritter, who had never advanced past the second round of a Grand Slam tournament, rallied in the fifth game to break Pierce’s serve for only the second time in the tournament, but failed to sustain the momentum.

“I was a little bit nervous because I really wanted to win and do well,” Pierce said.

After an uneven first set, Graf was satisfied with her game. She played patiently against the unheralded Argentine, and any thought of a third set was out of the question.

Sanchez Vicario knew what was coming when she played Halard on Center Court in the early evening. The French have not enjoyed much success in their tournament, so they embrace any compatriot who reaches the late rounds.

“I wasn’t about to let it bother me,” Sanchez Vicario said.

But it almost did when she allowed Halard to get into the match in the second set. Realizing the predicament, Sanchez Vicario went to work.

She did not want a third set, as Halard’s play improved with each cheer.

“I decided to take more risks in the tiebreaker,” Sanchez Vicario said. “Every time I was aggressive and took a risk, I won the point.”

Sanchez Vicario believes the experience will give her confidence. That is something Martinez could use when the two meet Thursday. Martinez had lost in five consecutive French Open quarterfinals.

After dropping her first set to Hack, the thought occurred to her. “Losing in the quarterfinals six years in a row, I (thought), ‘Oh, my God, I guess I am never going to pass it.’ ”

Tennis Notes

In today’s men’s quarterfinals, Alberto Berasategui of Spain will face No. 5 Goran Ivanisevic, and Hendrik Dreekmann, 19, of Germany, will meet No. 46 Magnus Larsson of Sweden. If Ivanisevic fails to reach the championship match, the tournament will have an unseeded finalist for the first time since Mikael Pernfors in 1986. . . . Sergi Bruguera’s only other victory over Andrei Medvedev was in last year’s French Open semifinals, also in straight sets.