Roddick-Sharapova do Brad-Angelina Impersonation

"This is one of my greatest days, to beat Hewitt here in Sydney, it's a special thing for me," said Seppi, who had to qualify into the main draw. "He made a lot of mistakes in the match but it was also a great win for me."

Unseeded Thai Paradorn Srichaphan edged Croatian qualifier Ivo Karlovic in two tiebreaks in a rain-delayed second-round match before then handing No. 2 seed Nikolay Davydenko a walkover in the quarterfinals citing a thigh injury.

"I hurting my left quad, since in the Chennai quarterfinals last week," Srichaphan tried to explain in English. "Then I came here, I keep playing. It wasn't that bad in the first round. Doctor said: 'It is not going to be better if you go out there tonight and try too hard -- you know, you maybe need longer recovery.'"

Other quarterfinal winners were No. 8 seed James Blake who came from a set down to defeat qualifier Arnaud Clement 3-6, 6-1, 6-4, and unseeded Russian Igor Andreev who outlasted countryman Dmitry Tursunov in three sets.

"I was telling my coach today this is kind of the best I've felt on the court so far this year," Blake said. "It just keeps getting better and better. I had about two and a half weeks before I came down here where I was practicing indoors. It's always a little tricky getting outdoors, especially on Rebound Ace."

In doubles quarterfinal play the top-seeded Bryan brothers beat Damm/Paes in straights, unseeded Austrians Knowle/Melzer saved a match point in a 13-11 match tiebreak win over No. 3 Hanley/Ullyett, and No. 4 Santoro/Zimonjic rolled unseeded Frenchmen Clement/Llodra 6-0, 6-4.

Matching up Friday in the semifinals are (2) Davydenko vs. (8) Blake (American leads career meetings 3-0), Andreev vs. (Q) Seppi (Russian leads 2-0), and in doubles Knowle/Melzer vs. Cermak/Friedl and (1) Bryan/Bryan vs. (4) Santoro/Zimonjic.

Baby Goran Goes Gonzo at ATP Auckland

With the added confidence of a year-end Davis Cup title under his belt, Croatian Mario "Baby Goran" Ancic continued to hammer the competition Thursday at the ATP stop in Auckland, bageling top seed Fernando "Gonzo" Gonzalez 6-0, 6-3 to advance into the semifinals.

"I was really happy that I finished it off and didn't give too many chances to a high-quality player like Fernando to come back because one set can be like that and then completely different in the second set," Ancic said. "That was the plan to try and come in and break his rhythm, and still play my game and I think I executed that extremely well today."

After the match Gonzalez pulled out of the doubles citing a shoulder injury.

Two more seeds successfully moved on Thursday in (6) Olivier Rochus (d. (2) Ferrer, bagel in the second) and (7) Jarkko Nieminen (d. Massu).

"This is the best ever. I never played so good," Rochus said. "I didn't miss one ball. Some balls I was closing my eyes and, boom, a winner. I don't know why."

Swiss Stan Wawrinka was the only unseeded player to gain the semis, straight-setting fellow un-seed Florian Mayer of Germany.

Lining up for the Friday semifinals are (5) Ancic vs. Wawrinka (first meeting) and (7) Nieminen vs. (6) O.Rochus (Roach brother leads series 3-1).

Henin Title Favorite in WTA Sydney Final

It hasn't taken long for former No. 1 Justine Henin-Hardenne to get up to speed this week at the WTA stop in Sydney. After returning from a leg injury at the end of 2005, and in her first event back beating Martina Hingis in her opener, Thursday the Belgian thrashed No. 6 seed and former US Open winner Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-3, 6-1 to gain the final.

"I've never been so relaxed on the tennis court before," Henin-Hardenne said. "That was great, I was feeling amazing. It felt like I hadn't stopped playing for four months. I'm happy with the way I'm playing right now and hope I can keep it going."

In the final the No. 5-seeded Belgian will face No. 7 Francesca Schiavone, who will be looking for her first career title in her seventh final after a 6-4, 6-3 semifinal win over No. 8 Nicole Vaidisova.

Henin-Hardenne has beaten the Italian in all three of their career meetings without dropping a set.

"(Henin-Hardenne) is very focused every point," Schiavone said. "She can see the play, you know. She know always what to do and what you are doing. So I think that she has the ball and she can see inside (crystal ball)."

The doubles final will be (4) Ruano Pascual/Suarez (d. (2) Groenefeld/Huber in the semis) vs. (3) Morariu/Stubbs (d. (1) Raymond/Stosur in three).

Top-seeded Medina v Cho in WTA Canberra Final

Top-seeded Spaniard Anabel Medina Garrigues came from a set down to reach the final Thursday at the WTA stop in Canberra, defeating the heat and No. 4-seeded Israeli Shahar Peer 6-7(4), 7-5, 6-4.

Medina Garrigues trailed 6-7(4), 4-4, 0-40 at one point, and in the third set jumped out to a 5-1 lead before Peer brought it back to 5-4 in a final gasp before succumbing.

"It was a very tough match and she played very well," Medina Garrigues said. "I had chances in the first set, but when I lost it I just told myself, okay, I have two to go. It was difficult because it was very hot and there were many long points, but I am a Spanish player and all our matches are long. I am very pleased to win."

In the final awaits unseeded Korean Yoon Jeong Cho, appearing in her third WTA championship match without a title after Thursday defeating No. 6 seed Catalina Castano 6-3, 2-6, 6-3.

"I think it means more to make this final, because of the tough times I have had," said Cho, who suffered a back injury after last year's US Open. "I will need to play well tomorrow, but I think my form is good. I have confidence from winning some tough matches here."

The final will be the first meeting between Medina Garrigues and Cho.

The doubles final will pit No. 3 seeds Marta Domachowska and Roberta Vinci against No. 4 seeds Claire Curran and Liga Dekmeijere.

Unseeded Krajicek One Win from WTA Hobart Title

Unseeded Michaella Krajicek of The Netherlands will compete for her second WTA title Friday in the final of the WTA stop at Hobart after defeating unseeded Croatian Jelena Kostanic 6-4, 6-2 in the Thursday semifinals.

"I was serving well and I was really happy with the way I played," the teenage Krajicek said. "In the second set she made some mistakes and her serve wasn't going that well so that was good for me of course."

In the final the Dutchwoman is in for a first-time meeting with No. 5-seeded Czech Iveta Benesova, who came from a set down to beat Italian Mara Santangelo 6-1 in the third.

"I was down in the first set and I'm really happy I came back and found a way to win the match," said Benesova, who won her lone tour title in 2004. "It's definitely good for my confidence to know that I can win tough matches. It's not good for my energy though, I feel a little tired after."

While they have never faced each other in tour play, Krajicek and Benesova will draw on their practice court experience in the Friday final.

"I know a lot about her," Krajicek said. "We've practiced three years together because I live partly in the Czech Republic because my parents are from there. It's going to be a tough match but hopefully we'll have some fun because we're friends. She's got a good return. Maybe my serve is a little bit better but I think her return is better than mine so it's going to be tough."

In the doubles final top seeds Nicole Pratt and Emilie Loit will face No. 5 seeds Jill Craybas and Kostanic.

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