Jankovic reaches Indian Wells final

INDIAN WELLS (California) (AFP) Former world number one Jelena Jankovic, trying to jump start a disappointing 2010 campaign, beat Samantha Stosur 6-2, 6-4 Friday to reach the BNP Paribas Open womens final.
I feel great. Im so happy to be in the finals for the first time here, said Jankovic, whose previous best performance in Indian Wells was a semi-final loss to eventual champion Ana Ivanovic in 2008.
I havent been doing well the last couple tournaments, added Jankovic, who fell in the third round at both the Australian Open and the Dubai Open last month, and bowed out in the first round at Sydney and Monterrey.
The 25-year-old Serbian, who had won both of her previous matches against Stosur, said the Australian made it tougher than the score might have indicated on a windy afternoon on stadium court.
I thought the key to todays match was my return, Jankovic said. Samantha has an unbelievable serve, one of the best serves in the womens game, and I was able to return a lot of her first serves.
I think she felt uncomfortable, because she really relies on that shot. Thats her best weapon.
Stosur, the eighth seed who came into the tournament ranked a career-high 11th in the world, is projected to break into the top 10 on Monday by virtue of reaching the semis.
She saved one match point on her own serve in the ninth game of the second set, and held to make Jankovic serve it out.
Jankovic had to fend off two break points, but finished it off with a serve that Stosur could only swipe out.
The first set was marked by a marathon fifth game, in which Jankovic earned the first break of the match on her fifth break point of the game as she won the final five games of the set then broke Stosur to open the second.
Stosur stopped the skid by breaking Jankovic to level the second set at 1-1, but she gave the break back in the fifth game - handing Jankovic a break point with a double fault.
It was a great week, but today I definitely didnt play anywhere close to as well as what I can, Stosur said.
I guess I got frustrated and wasnt able to pull it back. When youre a set down against a quality player, its always tough to come back.
Jankovic next plays either second-seeded Dane Caroline Wozniacki or fifth-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland.
The two are close friends, but Wozniacki said that would be put aside when they took the court on Friday night.
You have to keep professional in that way and see that little yellow ball and hit it inside the lines and over the net, Wozniacki said.
Once the match is over, itll be the winners turn to buy dinner, Radwanska said.
Well, I hope Im going to buy dinner, Wozniacki said.