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| |  Friday, 7 June, 2002, 15:27 GMT 16:27 UK Costa wins Spanish battle  Costa won on his third match point Albert Costa (Spa) bt Alex Corretja (Spa) 6-3 6-4 3-6 6-3 Albert Costa claimed a four-set victory over his Spanish compatriot Alex Corretja to reach his first Grand Slam final at the French Open. The 26-year-old triumphed in three hours and 10 minutes and will meet another Spaniard, Juan Carlos Ferrero in Sunday's final.
The 20th seed proved the stronger in a match packed with long rallies to take his third straight victory over Corretja, who failed to hit top form. "It's a dream to be in the final at Roland Garros," said Costa, whose fortunes have taken a turn for the better after three years without a title and dropping to a low of 40th in the world last year. "I've played a few finals, now it's his turn," said five-time semi-finalist Corretja. "I was a little tired and physically I was slower. He was better today," he added.
Corretja got off to the better start winning the first two games, but two breaks by Costa gave him the set 6-3 in 40 minutes. In the second set, it was Costa who rushed to a 2-0 lead but Corretja battled his way back, winning three games in a row. A weary Corretja missed two points to draw level at 5-5, allowing Costa take the second set 6-4. Costa looked to be on his way to a straight-sets win when he led 2-0 in the third, but Corretja rallied to take five straight games, winning the set 6-3 to give him a glimmer of hope. Costa made no mistake at the start of the fourth set when he led 3-0 after Corretja needed treatment for a cut hand following a fall. And despite letting two match points slip, he finally managed to wrap up the win on his own serve. Costa, who reached the quarter-fianls at Roland Garros in 1995 and 2000 is bidding for a first title in three years having last won in Kitzbuhel in 1999. | |
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