Hingis, the world No. 1, defeated fourth-seeded Barbara Schett of Austria 6-1, 6-1 Saturday to reach the final of the $170,000 Qatar Open.

Hingis will meet third-seeded Sandrine Testud of France in Sunday's final. Testud beat Adriana Gersi of the Czech Republic 6-1, 6-1 in the other semifinal.

Hingis' match lasted 50 minutes, but the Swiss champion said her victory was not easy.

``Schett is a very good player,'' Hingis said. ``She was once ranked No. 7 in the world, but I never thought I'd lose against Schett.

``I wasn't at my best today, but my strength is that I adjust quickly to different situations.''

Hingis broke Schett twice in the first set, hitting two aces along the way. Schett consistently hit her returns wide, and the first set lasted only 21 minutes.

``It looks as if I won easily, but I have worked very hard for this kind of victory,'' Hingis said. ``I have become a better player since the U.S. Open last year. The level of my game now is up where I wanted it to be.''

In the second set, Hingis broke Schett in the first and third games and won easily despite the Austrian's four aces.

Hingis has played Testud 13 times and has yet to lose.

``I am not worried about my final against Hingis,'' Testud said. ``She is the world's best player. All matches against her are tough. I was close to beating her on a few occasions but could not. I am under no pressure.''

Testud also teamed with Roberta Vinci of Italy to beat the Dutch pair of Kristie Boogert and Miriam Oremans 7-5, 7-6 (4) to win the doubles title.