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| November 5, 2001 | Monday | haba’an 18, 1422 |
Serena wins final by default
MUNICH (Germany), Nov 4: World number one Lindsay Davenport’s season ended on a sad note on Sunday when injury forced her to pull out of the final of the WTA Championships.
Davenport, who returned to number one and made sure of ending the year in top spot by beating Kim Clijsters in the semifinals, was due to play fellow American Serena Williams in the final of the season-ending event, scheduled for 1300 GMT.
She informed tournament officials that she had felt pain in her troublesome right knee at the end of her match against Belgian Clijsters on Saturday and could not play.
“I can’t tell you how bad I feel,” said Davenport, who was sidelined by a knee injury for two-and-a-half months earlier in the season.
“It’s the worst possible way to end the season. It’s almost impossible for me to walk. I won’t be able to do anything for a month.”
Seventh seed Williams, playing her first tournament since losing to sister Venus in the U.S. Open final last September, becomes the first player to win the year-end Championships at the first attempt.
Lisa Raymond and Rennae Stubbs underlined their status as the best doubles pair by beating Cara Black and Elena Likhovtseva 7-5 3-6 6-3 in the final of the year-end WTA Championships.
Paris Masters final result:
Sebastien Grosjean (Fra x6) bt Yevgeny Kafelnikov (Rus x4) 7-6 (7/3), 6-1, 6-7 (5/7), 6-4.—Reuters
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