Tennis: Justine Henin of Belgium Takes on Jelena Jankovic Thursday in French Open Tournament

06 June 2007 -- Two-time defending champion Justine Henin of Belgium takes on Jelena Jankovic of Serbia while Maria Sharapova of Russia faces another Serb - Ana Ivanovic - in the French Open women's semifinals in Paris Thursday.

Henin has beaten Jankovic every time they have played, including three times this year. In their last meeting, Henin defeated the Serbian player in three sets on clay last month in Berlin (3-6, 6-4, 6-4). The Belgian is trying to become the first woman since Monica Seles to win three French Opens in a row.

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Meanwhile, Sharapova, the second seed, is more evenly matched against Ivanovic. The Russian beat Ivanovic indoors on hard courts last year in Linz, Austria. The Serbian evened the series a 1-1 when Sharapova retired in the semifinals of the Pan Pacific tournament in Tokyo.

The men's semifinals are Friday when world number one Roger Federer of Switzerland plays Nikolay Davydenko of Russia and two-time defending champion Rafael Nadal of Spain faces Novak Djokovic of Serbia.

Source: VOA News