MUNICH (Germany), Oct 31: In-form Lindsay Davenport kept alive her hopes of finishing the year in top spot with a straightforward 6-3 6-3 win over Amanda Coetzer at the WTA Championships on Wednesday.

Davenport, the second seed, outplayed the pocket-sized South African with an impressive display of power tennis in her first round match at the year-end event for the world’s top 16 players.

Anke Huber’s career had earlier ended in disappointing fashion when Belgian teenager Justine Henin crushed her 6-1 6-2 in the day’s first match.

Huber, 26, enjoyed one of the finest moments of her 12-year career at the year-end Championships when she pushed Steffi Graf to five sets in all-German final in 1995.

Huber, who won 12 singles titles during her career, had intended to play in the Australian Open before retiring but then decided Munich would be her last tournament.

Wimbledon finalist Henin, making her first appearance in the season’s finale, showed no mercy, breaking her opponent in the second game before capturing her serve again in the sixth game with a superb cross-court forehand.

First round results (prefix number denotes seeding):

6-Jelena Dokic (Yugoslavia) beat Meghann Shaughnessy (U.S.) 7-6 (7-4) 6-2; 2-Lindsay Davenport (U.S.) beat Amanda Coetzer (South Africa) 6-3 6-3; 4-Justine Henin (Belgium) beat Anke Huber (Germany) 6-1 6-2—Reuters