2005 French Open News
By Alix Ramsay| June 01, 2005

The omens are looking good. The last time Mary Pierce reached the semi finals at the French Open, she went on to win the title. At the time she had been working with her brother, David, for a few months, she had rediscovered her faith (she was born a Catholic) and she had relaxed into her position of France's top player.

Five years later and Pierce is back working with her brother, she reaffirms her faith at the drop of a hat and she is back in the semi finals of the French Open where she will play Elena Likhovtseva, the veteran Russian doubles specialist. Just for good measure, Pierce leads Likhovtseva 6-4 in their career rivalry and while she dealt with the Russian easily in Berlin three and a half weeks ago, she had not beaten Likhovtseva since 2000, the year she won the French Open.

The only slight flaw in this otherwise promising scenario is Justine Henin-Hardenne. The small but fearsome Belgian has not been beaten in 22 matches and as she hoves into view of the final, she is beginning to look unstoppable. She will face Nadia Petrova today.

The only time Petrova has ever beaten Henin-Hardenne was when the Belgian was suffering from a debilitating virus and after the loss at the US Open, she did not play for another six months. She is the favorite to reach the final and, once there, crush anyone she meets.

Much as Likhovtseva and Petrova are into the last four - it is Likhovtseva's first grand slam semi final - they both sound terrified. Likhovtseva was reduced to jelly in the quarterfinals against Sesil Karatancheva, and, whatever she tried, she could not rid herself of nerves.

"I wasn't there on the court," she complained. "I wish I could go more forward with every match but I was tight. I was nervous, really nervous."

Petrova, a semi-finalist here two years ago, is a little more experienced but no less aware of her anxieties. "It's just a matter to be focused and calm," she said. "You must learn to be quiet inside and all the outside distractions away."

That is something both Henin-Hardenne and Pierce have learned to do in their own ways. From being wracked with nerves in their early days - Henin-Hardenne could not beat her compatriot, Kim Clijsters, for love nor money while Pierce was desperate to please and terrified to fail - they have both reassessed their lives and their careers and come to enjoy the moment.

Pierce's difficult relationship with her father has, at last, been resolved and spending four of the past five years battling a string of injuries, she is simply enjoying the chance to play. Where once Jim Pierce was banned from attending her matches on the WTA Tour because of his aggressive behavior, now he is her greatest supporter.

"The relationship with my Dad is great," she said. "He'll come to practices every day, he just loves it and he loves tennis. We do stuff together and almost every day I'll go and eat lunch at his apartment. His wife is a really good cook."

Able now just to "enjoy the moment", her nerves can be set aside as she enjoys her ride through the draw. A self confessed nervous wreck before her quarterfinal, she wanted to "soar like an eagle" when she stepped on the court. And she did.

After the misery of last year, Henin-Hardenne has decided to enjoy herself on court. Not only able to play again but able to play her best, she is loving every minute of her comeback. "It's a question of maturity," she said. "I think the fact that I enjoy every single moment, I really enjoy working on each point is very important."

The omens look good for her, too, and if both Pierce and Henin-Hardenne make their way to the final, we should be in for a cracking Saturday.

Meanwhile, the bottom half of the men's draw allowed Mariano Puerta and Nikolay Davydenko to enjoy their moment in the sun even if the good people of Paris seemed underwhelmed. Puerta beat Guillermo Canas 6-2, 3-6, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 to reach his first grand slam semi-final while Davydenko beat Tommy Robredo 3-6, 6-1, 6-2, 4-6, 6-4.

Just eight months ago Puerta was trying to make his way on the tour after a nine month drugs ban. At the start of 2004 he was suspended from the tour after testing positive for the anabolic steroid, clenbuterol. He had been given the drug to cure an acute asthma attack but because he had not declared the drug to the drug testers. In October he was back in business, playing - and winning - a Futures event, the lowest rung of the professional ladder, in Chile.

"I'm now enjoying myself because of my experiences and because of all of the things that I've been through," Puerta said. "All the things that have happened have strengthened me."

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