February 20, 2007	Tuesday	Safar 2, 1428

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ANTWERP (Belgium), Feb 19: Amelie Mauresmo won enough diamonds to last a lifetime. Kim Clijsters will have to do with golden memories.

Mauresmo beat Clijsters 6-4, 7-6 (4) on Sunday to win the Diamond Games for the third straight year, enough to take home the $1.3 million golden racket studded with 1,702 gems. It was too bad it spoiled the last match on home soil in the farewell year of the retiring Clijsters.

The sparkle of diamonds, however, held Mauresmo in its spell all week. The ostentatious trophy was for the first player to win three titles in any five-year span, and after victories in 2005 and last year, the Frenchwoman was bent on winning again.

In a tense, close match, the world's third-ranked player was much more enterprising with her moves to the net while Clijsters, fourth in the rankings, never got her serve working properly.

Mauresmo got her match point on a disputed ace, turning her celebrations afterwards in a muted affair, accompanied by the boos of the fans.

The match was played in front of frenetic home fans, all trying to help Clijsters to victory throughout the 1 hour, 48 minute match.

The Belgian's rusty serve helped Mauresmo, even though Clijsters would often hit the lines on her groundstrokes.

However tight it was, it always was a hopeless chase. Even in the decisive tiebreaker, Clijsters' serve and straying backhands let her down.

SIMON CLAIMS FIRST CAREER TITLE

MARSEILLE (France): Gilles Simon of France won his first career title on Sunday, beating seventh-seeded Marcos Baghdatis 6-4, 7-6 (3) at the Open 13.

Simon broke the 2006 Australian Open runner-up in the fourth game of the second set to take a 3-1 lead and then went ahead 5-2.

Baghdatis rallied to 5-5 and forced a tiebreaker, but a series of unforced errors -- notably a failed drop shot on match point – gave Simon the win.

Simon won the first set on his third set point when he chased down a drop shot from Baghdatis and sent it up the line. Baghdatis scampered to his right and sent the ball crosscourt, but Simon anticipated well and smashed it into the open court.

In the fourth game of the second set, Simon broke Baghdatis when the Cypriot's drop shot struck the net. But Baghdatis later made it 5-5 with a lob on the run.

MURRAY CAPTURES SAP OPEN TITLE

SAN JOSE (California): Defending champion Andy Murray won his second career ATP title, neutralizing Ivo Karlovic's big serve to win a thrilling SAP Open final 6-7 (3), 6-4, 7-6 (2) on Sunday.

Murray proved to be the only player who had an answer for the difficult serve of the 2.08-meter (6-foot-10) Karlovic, who lost his serve only once in 51 games and had a tournament-record 87 aces heading into the final.

Despite Karlovic's 26 aces on Sunday, Murray did an outstanding job on his return game in the final two sets, forcing Karlovic to hit more shots that he needed in previous matches.

After losing the first-set tiebreaker and the opening game of the second set on his own serve, Murray rallied back. He closed the match with a 220-kph (137-mph) ace.

Murray, ranked 13th in the world, is off to a fast start in 2007, finishing as runner-up in Doha and making the fourth round of the Australian Open before losing to Rafael Nadal.

The key game in the match might have been the one just after Murray's serve was broken to open the second set.

Karlovic had found his rhythm on his serve, winning 11 straight points. Murray forced Karlovic into two errors at the net with strong returns off second serves and then converted on break point with a backhand passing shot off a 215 kph (134 mph) first serve.

Murray hit three straight forehand passing shots off second serves from Karlovic to close out the set.

In the third, Karlovic saved one match point with a 232 kph service winner at 5-6, but faltered in the tiebreaker. Murray won the last five points.

VICTORY FOR CANAS

RIO DE JANEIRO: Argentine wild card Guillermo Canas, who served a drugs suspension last year, put his troubles behind him on Sunday when he defeated former world number one Juan Carlos Ferrero 7-6 (7/4), 6-2 to win the Brazil Open at Costa do Sauipe.

The Argentine, the world number 107, improved his finals record to 7-7 (4-4 on clay). His last ATP title on clay came in Umag in July, 2004.

Results:

Final: Guillermo Canas (ARG) bt Juan Carlos Ferrero (ESP x1) 7-6 (7/4), 6-2; Semi-finals: Juan Carlos Ferrero (ESP x1) bt Flavio Saretta (BRA) 6-2, 6-4; Guillermo Canas (ARG) bt Juan Ignacio Chela (ARG x6) 7-6 (8/6,) 6-1.

LI NA LOSES

DUBAI: Li Na, the first Chinese player to reach the world's top 20, suffered a surprise first round loss at the WTA Dubai Open on Monday.

The number seven seed from Wuhan in Hubei, the host nation's best bet for a singles medal at next year's Olympics in Beijing, was within a couple of points of a straight sets victory before falling away to a 6-7 (5/7), 7-6 (7/3), 6-3 loss to Eleni Daniilidou, the former world 14 from Greece.

Results:

First round: Maria Kirilenko (RUS) bt Monica Niculescu (ROM) 6-3, 6-0; Eleni Daniilidou (GRE) bt Li Na (CHN x7) 6-7 (5/7), 7-6 (7/3), 6-3; Alicia Molik (AUS) bt Anna-Lena Groeneveld (GER) 6-3, 6-4.—Agencies