French pair to battle for Bali honours (Roundup)

Nov 7, 2009, 10:34 GMT

Bali, Indonesia - Marion Bartoli had to fight to the finish while Aavane Rezai was untroubled as the French pair won through into the final of the Commonwealth Bank Tournament of Champions Saturday.

The top seed Bartoli was rolling to what seemed to be victory in well under an hour, but 39-year-old Japanese Kimiko Date Krumm suddenly came alive, saving a match point in the sixth game of the second set and breaking for 2-5.

The oldest woman on the WTA who re-started her career in 2008 after a decade of retirement, then made a match of it before Bartoli seized final control to go though 6-1, 6-3 after nearly 90 minutes.

'Until 6-1, 5-1 it was absolutely perfect', said Bartoli. 'Then Kimiko started to play really well. She was swinging freely and hitting some really great shots.

'It wasn't my level going down, it was her playing too good. But I knew I just had to win one more game and that's what I did.'

The 25-year-old French winner notched seven aces and broke six times.

Rezai, meanwhile, was untroubled against Spaniard Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez 6-2, 6-3 in 64 minutes.

'It was a pretty good match. I'm very happy. I felt like I played very well, no mistakes. Today was perfect,' said Rezai.

'She played a game that I really like. She came to volley (at the net) a lot of times and one of my best shots is passing.

'It was easier to play this shot, hitting flat and down the line. Her game was perfect for me.'

Bartoli stands 2-0 against Rezai, with their last in meeting the Tokyo second round in September. The 2007 Wimbledon finalist Bartoli is seeking her third title of the season after Stanford and Monterrey.

Bartoli was the only seed remaining from the 12 women who began the 600,000-dollar tournament comprising the highest-ranking players who have won a WTA International title this year but who did not compete in the season-ending WTA Championships in Qatar.