TNT Sports
Russia into Fed Cup final
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Published 10/07/2005 at 14:12 GMT+1
Anastasia Myskina gave defending champions Russia victory over the United States in their Fed Cup semi-final on Sunday, beating Jill Craybas 6-2 6-4. Russia, who had never beaten the U.S. in four previous meetings in the competition, were 2-0 ahead overni
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Wimbledon champion Venus Williams kept a weakened U.S. team's hopes alive with a crushing 6-1 6-2 defeat of Elena Dementieva in the day's first singles in the Olympic Stadium.
But Myskina, who crucially beat Venus in Saturday's opener, had too many weapons for the gritty Craybas, winning in one hour 18 minutes to give the home team an untouchable 3-1 lead.
Dinara Safina and Vera Douchevina then beat Williams and Corina Morariu 6-1 7-5 to make the final score 4-1.
Myskina, who inspired Russia to their first Fed Cup title in a dramatic 3-2 win over France last year, reeled off four straight games to clinch the first set in just 23 minutes.
The 2004 French Open champion then went 3-0 ahead in the second before the experienced American, a late replacement for Mashona Washington, began to offer some real resistance.
Myskina held her nerve and broke the world number 60 in the ninth game before holding to love to seal victory.
Washington, who lost to Dementieva in Saturday's singles, had only been drafted in after world number one Lindsay Davenport pulled out with a back injury.
"I really didn't care who I was playing because they are about the same level," Myskina, who turned 24 on Friday, said.
"I knew I had a great chance to clinch the tie and it would have been a disaster if I had lost."
PARIS FINAL
Russia will now take on France in Paris on September 17-18 after the French took an unbeatable 3-0 lead against Spain in their semi-final.
Earlier, Venus gave the U.S. team a lifeline when she crushed world number five Dementieva 6-1 6-2 in the first reverse singles.
Dementieva came under a barrage of attacking tennis and quickly found herself 4-0 down before finally getting on the scoreboard when Venus netted a backhand on break point.
The American then won the next two games to take the opening set in 33 minutes.
Venus secured two more breaks in the second set before sealing a one-sided contest on her first match point with a crunching volley in just over an hour.
The five-times grand slam champion said she had been determined to give a better account of herself on Sunday after losing for only the second time in 14 previous Fed Cup matches.
"Yesterday was tough. It was difficult to find the energy after so many weeks of playing. I was not my normal self for sure," she said.
"I wanted to win for the team and I felt so bad about it. I was very disappointed... It's hard because it's not just me -- it's a disappointment for the whole team."
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