Henin-Hardenne lands in finals

MELBOURNE, Australia – Justine Henin-Hardenne beat Maria Sharapova 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 today to advance to the Australian Open final and extend her winning streak to 13 matches at Melbourne Park.

Henin-Hardenne, the reigning French Open champion, missed this tournament last year because of a stress fracture in her right leg after beating Kim Clijsters in the 2004 Australian Open final.

U.S. Open champion Clijsters, who took over as No. 1 in women’s tennis when she beat Martina Hingis in the quarterfinals, faced WTA Championship winner Amelie Mauresmo in today’s other semifinal.

If Clijsters advances over third-seeded Mauresmo, it will set up the 45th Grand Slam singles final between women from the same nation (Belgium).

While Hingis’ remarkable return to tennis ended, her Swiss compatriot Roger Federer stayed on course for his seventh Grand Slam title with a 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (7), 7-6 (5) win over No. 5 Nikolay Davydenko.

Federer next plays Nicolas Kiefer, who edged No. 25 Sebastien Grosjean 6-3, 0-6, 6-4, 6-7 (1), 8-6 on Wednesday.