| SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA (TICKER) -- For the second straight
day, rain has pushed back the start of the highly anticipated showdown
between the top two players in women's tennis at the $535,000 State Farm
Tennis Classic.
The final between top seed Martina Hingis of Switzerland and No. 2 Lindsay
Davenport of the United States was washed out on Sunday and rescheduled
for 12:15 p.m EST today. But showers and isolated thunderstorms continue
to fall in the area and tournament officials will decide a course of action
by 5:30 p.m.
The rain also is forcing a delay in the start of the men's Franklin
Templeton Tennis Classic.
Hingis has lost her last four encounters with Davenport, all in straight
sets. The biggest came in the final of the Australian Open in January.
Davenport is 10-7 lifetime against Hingis, winning seven of 10 final matchups.
Both women posted routs in Saturday's semifinals and are seeking their
28th career titles.
Hingis advanced to her third final of the season with a 6-4, 6-3 victory
over third-seeded Mary Pierce of France.
This is Hingis' first tournament since defeating Sandrine Testud of
France in last month's Pan Pacific Open final in Tokyo. The 19-year-old
Hingis has not dropped a set this week.
Davenport moved into her third consecutive final by crushing sixth-seeded
Anna Kournikova of Russia, 6-2, 6-2, in 55 minutes, improving to 13-1 this
season on hard courts.
Davenport, 23, has turned her game up a notch in each match she has
played this week. She rallied from a set down to defeat Jennifer Capriati
in the second round before ending Monica Seles' season-opening six-match
winning streak on Friday with a 6-4, 6-4 quarterfinal victory.
Davenport will be appearing in her 11th final since January 1999. Over
that period, she has compiled an 8-2 record in championship matches, with
losses to Venus Williams in New Haven last August and Amelie Mauresmo at
Sydney in January.
Although the American cannot take over the No. 1 ranking with a victory,
she can move within 213 points of Hingis. But a loss would drop Davenport
548 points behind.
First prize at this hardcourt event is $87,000.
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