Sanchez Vicario Falls to Hingis in Semifinals

A red-faced Martina Hingis huffed and puffed, chasing down Arantxa Sanchez Vicario’s shots in a hard-fought 6-4, 6-4 semifinal victory Saturday in the Acura Classic.

Hingis blew a 3-0 lead in the first set, then fought back from a 1-3 deficit in the second. The Swiss teenager broke Sanchez Vicario twice in winning the match’s final three games.

“After I won the first set, I was kind of relaxed, but she was always there,” Hingis said. “Against her, you can’t give up any points, otherwise then she makes you run. I gave my lead up too easy.”

Second-seeded Lindsay Davenport, seeking her third finals berth in as many weeks, faced fourth-seeded Monica Seles in the night match. The final is today at Manhattan Country Club.

Hingis, the world’s top-ranked player, has lost in the semifinals of her last three tournaments. She hasn’t won a title since the Italian Open in May.

“I can’t believe I’m in the finals again,” said Hingis, who also reached the doubles final with Natasha Zvereva. “I didn’t know how it feels anymore.”

Hingis does know how to play Sanchez Vicario, having beaten the Spaniard seven times in a row. But Sanchez Vicario, who won the first time they played in 1996, isn’t discouraged. Their two previous meetings went three sets.

“I know that I’m getting closer and if I do go for my shots like I did today, I can beat her probably next time,” she said. “I know I’m at the same level as her and I can compete.”

Trailing, 1-3, in the second set, Hingis won two games in a row to tie the set at 3-3, including breaking Sanchez Vicario’s serve after four deuces. But then she lost her serve at love-40 to put the Spaniard back in front.

Sanchez Vicario committed successive forehand errors to get give Hingis a break, 4-4. Hingis served a quick 40-love game and then closed out the victory on her third match point with a backhand passing shot.

“I make more mistakes with my forehand,” said Sanchez Vicario, who committed 38 unforced errors and converted only three of five break points. “When you play against Hingis, you have to go more for your shots than normal. That probably caused me to force a little more and I missed some.”