The fact that Justine Henin will be in the finals, almost no doubt. The quarterfinals with Jankovic should go according to the usual, well-established scheme - the Belgian victory in three sets as a result of a bitter struggle.
So far, only one thing can be said about rival Justine in the semifinals - she will almost certainly be a Russian woman. However, neither Petrova, nor Kuznetsova, nor Dementieva now seem such a serious threat to Justine. Moreover, before our meeting with Henin, our girls still have to prettyly pat their nerves one by one.
Nadezhda Petrova played finals with Justine in Berlin for two years in a row and won the previous year. Now Nadezhda needs to defend a lot of points in Berlin, so as not to fall out of the top ten on the eve of Roland Garros. And although Nadia steadfastly endures all the hardships of fate, it is obvious that she is far from the best form, especially in comparison with last year's spring extravaganza.
Elena Dementieva looks fresher than all of ours: a two-month break in the game did her good. The proof is two victories over the difficult rivals Santangelo and Shaughnessy. But something in this world does not change. Extreme instability, coupled with a poor supply, always made Dementieva vulnerable to the Belgian. And the main trump card was and remains one - the notorious fighting character.
Svetlana Kuznetsova in a match with Sybil Bammer pulled her hip. It is still unknown how serious this injury is, but, it seems, it will not prevent her from beating Martina Muller, who drew in the grid instead of the planned unsinkable Shahar Peer. But the matter is not even in the physical form of Kuznetsova. The question is whether Svetlana “wants” to meet with Justine. Recently, Sveta herself admitted that psychology is preventing her from winning - after all, there is nothing more to explain the score of their meetings: 14: 1 in favor of the Belgian. Against this background, the loss of Svetlana Bondarenko in Warsaw looked very suspicious, especially after the victory over Venus Williams - as if on purpose, so as not to meet Justin in the final.
According to the laws of the genre, the second seeded Amelie Moresmo should get into the finals. Most likely, it will be so, and we will get the opportunity to see this beautiful confrontation for the 14th time. But I want the same variety.
Operated on appendicitis, Amelie finally returned to the tour after a two-month absence. The first match showed that she feels rather well, but for now, it is difficult for her to keep the pace in the exchange of powerful blows throughout the game, and this gives the rest a chance.
And there are many who wish. The first in line is Yulia Vakulenko, another Ukrainian who will probably want to create a second sensation in a row and again knock out the second seeded one from the tournament, as it was with Kim Clijsters in Warsaw.
Among our guests, our Dinara Safina, the only remaining Russian woman in that half of the grid. Anya Chakvetadze was injured last week and failed in Berlin - she lost to Lucy Safarova in the second round. Now Safina and Safarova will argue for reaching the quarterfinals. Dinara twice lost to Lucy, on the grass and on hard. What will happen on the ground, we have to see.
And, of course, Alena Bondarenko is the main suspect. Although her victory over Kuznetsova in Warsaw looks somewhat strange, the net in Berlin says that Alena has a good chance of at least a semi-final. To do this, you need to go through Ivanovich and Hingis - now this task is quite feasible. A year ago, Ivanovich won a heavy three-set match against Bondarenko, and now she can lose a heavy three-set match - Ana is known to everyone for emotional instability. And how to deal with Martina Hingis, Alena showed her sister, Katerina. Even though Hingis won, the victory cost her dearly - 7: 5, 7: 6. If Bondarenko Sr. makes at least a third less mistake, then she can count on success.
Ksenia VITRYAK