Corretja vs. Moya In French Final

By CBSNews.com staff CBSNews.com staff

June 5, 1998 / 5:47 PM EDT / CBS Sportsline

Alex Corretja wore down Cedric Pioline on a muggy center court today to join Carlos Moya in an all-Spanish men's final at the French Open.

Corretja took advantage of Pioline's exhaustion to win their semifinal 6-3, 6-4, 6-2, ending Pioline's hopes of becoming the first Frenchman to win at Roland Garros since Yannick Noah in 1983.

In 82-degree heat and smothering humidity, Corretja took the first set in 53 minutes. It took him 50 minutes to capture the second set, and he finished off the drained Pioline, who had played three five-setters to reach the semifinals, in just 38 minutes in the final set.

In the third set, with both players putting icepacks on their necks during changeovers, Pioline made consecutive double faults to help give Corretja a service break in the second game. Pioline was broken again for 4-1, slamming his racket into his chair, and again in the final game.

"Cedric, today, I saw he was very tired. It was very difficult for him, but for me it was very good," Corretja said as he came off the court.

Moya defeated fellow Spaniard Felix Mantilla 5-7, 6-2, 6-4, 6-2 in the other semifinal. Moya mixed his powerful groundstrokes with delicate drop shots to throw off Mantilla, who preferred to rally patiently from the baseline.

The Spaniards split the first two sets and Mantilla took a 4-1 lead in the third set. But Moya won the next five games, losing just five points during that span, to take control of the match.

"I just decided to take more risks than I was taking before," Moya said."I decided there had to be a change, otherwise that set was for him. Two set to one down, it's tough to come back."

Moya got to match point with a 127-mph serve that handcuffed Mantilla, then hit a 122-mph service winner to finish off the 2-hour, 42-minute match.

On Thursday, Monica Seles advanced to the French Open final for the first time since 1992 and won for the first time against Martina Hingis, yet showed none of the giddy enthusiasm she had as a teen-ager.

Though Seles flashed a big smile after her 6-3, 6-2 victory in the semifinals of the event she won three straight times in the early 1990s, her success was tempered by playing in her first tournament since her father died of cancer on May 14.

"I do feel happy. I mean, it's really great. But I've tried to keep a sense of balance," said Seles, who pumped her fist in triumph after Thursday's win over the world's top-ranked woman."I'm still going to be missing people. Some things in my life are not going to be better."

She'll face Arantxa Sanchez Vicario in Saturday's final. Sanchez Vicario celebrated her 6-3, 7-6 (7-5) win over second-seeded Lindsay Davenport by blowing a kiss to her Yorkshire terrier in the VIP box.

Seles is 14-2 against Sanchez Vicario, a two-time French Open champion.

Seles is wearing her father's ring on a chain around her neck and has worn black throughout the French Open. Althoug the outfit was chosen before her father's death, she said the color is fitting.

"I'm really glad it's not a bright color, because it just feels more appropriate," Seles said."I try to give respect to Dad."

Seles, who slammed two-handed winners within inches of the lines, lost all five previous matches against Hingis -- including a loss in the semifinals here last year.

Hingis was overpowering in her run to the semifinals, not losing a set in the tournament and having little trouble with eighth-seeded Venus Williams in the quarterfinals. But the sixth-seeded Seles was in control throughout, moving Hingis all over the court with shots that skimmed just over the net.

"She just hits everything very hard and very aggressively from every place on the court," Hingis said."Usually she makes more mistakes or she gets a little bit tired, but today she just didn't."