INDIAN WELLS -- With the preliminaries over, it’s a showdown at noon for the women’s title today at the Indian Wells Tennis Master Series.
Power vs. finesse
Size vs. speed.
No. 1 vs. No. 2.
Hingis vs. Davenport.
History in the making.
On one side, it’s the player the rankings say is No. 1. Martina Hingis, who won the Indian Wells title in 1998, defeated Mary Pierce 6-4, 6-2 Friday in one semifinal.
On the other side, it’s the player everyone else says is No. 1. Second-ranked Lindsay Davenport has beaten Hingis in straight sets the last four meetings. Davenport, the 1997 champion, has a 10-7 career record against Hingis.
"It’s always exciting to play Martina," said Davenport, who is appearing in her sixth straight final. "That always seems to get a big buzz around in terms of fans and media. So that’s always fun. I’ve always actually kind of cheered for her to get to the finals after I’m there."
Hingis doesn’t exactly share the same feeling. After losing in the finals of the Australian Open to Davenport, Hingis said she didn’t like playing her.
But she is looking forward to today.
"Against Lindsay, it’s always that kind of special thing," Hingis said. "You have only those few top players. I think against the other ones, because they are not at the top, there’s something missing."
It’s a rivalry that’s growing in stature with the Sanex WTA Tour’s top players. An example of their drawing power came later Friday afternoon in Stadium 2, where Davenport and doubles partner Corina Morariu beat Pierce and Hingis in front of a standing-room-only crowd. It left the main stadium nearly empty for the Magnus Norman-Alex Corretja men’s quarterfinal match.
But Pierce looked like she might spoil the dream matchup.
Pierce got off to a fast start, taking a 4-1 lead. Pierce looked as sharp as she was when she disposed of defending champion Serena Williams on Wednesday.
"I don’t think I started slow," Hingis said. "There was not much I could do about what she did out there. She had a great beginning. She bounced those backhands down the line, cross-court, wherever she wanted. I’m like, 'Not much I can do here.’"
But in the next two games, Hingis fought back and made Pierce work on long rallies. Once she won the next two games, the momentum changed.
"Martina just played two really good games at 4-1," Pierce said. "She really made me work a lot for the points. I probably just dropped my intensity a little and wasn’t as aggressive or coming forward as I was in the beginning of the first five games."
Asked what might have caused her fatigue following a day off, Pierce said laughing, "It could have been the mistake that my hotel gave me a wake-up call at 6:45. Besides that, I have no idea."
Pierce, who said she was suppose to wake up at 8:30 a.m., didn’t blame the wake up call for what she called "heavy legs," but more on the long week with two tough three-set matches catching up to her.
Hingis’ continued her momentum surge in winning five straight games to take the first set.
Hingis has gotten off to slow starts against the power players. In the quarterfinals against Monica Seles, Hingis had her serve broken twice and trailed 3-2 before winning 6-3, 6-1.
And against Davenport, she trailed in the Australian Open before losing 6-1, 7-5.
But Hingis said it’s not so much her starting slow.
"Those big girls are going to play like they did in the beginning all the time," Hingis said. "I just have to stay in the game. Even if I lose the first set, I still have to think about, you know, they might lose their streak, their control and just get everything back. That’s always been my game.
"But when they come out and serve that big and hit that deep, it’s not much I can do."
And against Davenport, she said her problems at the start weren’t from a lack of effort. "I tried to do things, it just didn’t work out," Hingis said.
Hingis, known more as a finesse player, has a good serve, but not one with power. Although fleet-footed, Hingis’ effectiveness has been her placement. But the lack of zip on the serve has worked to Davenport’s advantage.
But no matter what happens today, Hingis will retain the No. 1 spot. While Davenport would like the No. 1 ranking, she said she’s comfortable at No. 2.
"I definitely think I’ve been the No. 1 player since October or November, maybe even the summer," Davenport said after her 6-2, 6-1 semifinal win over Elena Dementieva on Thursday. "If I play well the next few months, I think I’ll regain it."