Posted at 9:13 a.m., Sunday, November 11, 2007
Tennis: Henin rallies past Sharapova to win in Spain
Associated Press
MADRID, Spain — Justine Henin won the Sony Ericsson Championships on Sunday, rallying past Maria Sharapova 5-7, 7-5, 6-3 in the longest three-set final in tournament history.Henin captured her 25th straight match and her 10th title of the year. The Belgian is the sixth player to successfully defend her title at the WTA's season-ending championship.
She saved five of Sharapova's six break chances in the final set, and 14 of 18 overall. Henin won on her fifth match point, breaking after Sharapova netted a drop shot. The match lasted 3 hours, 24 minutes.
Sharapova came into the tournament after about a two-month layoff because of a shoulder injury. The Russian took the first set after breaking in the 12th game on her eighth set point. Henin then corrected her erratic serve and gained an important break in the 11th game of the second set.
