Justine Henin claims the French Open

Justine Henin has become the first woman in 15 years to win the French Open women's title three years in a row. In the final yesterday, Henin trashed Ivanovic 6-1, 6-2, extending her Open era record-winning streak at Roland Garros to 35 consecutive sets. The 65-minute match ended as Henin closed out the victory with a skillful forehand volley, then flipped her racket, buried her head in her hands, leaned on the net and exhaled. 19-year-old Ivanovic, who managed to beat the Maria Sharapova and Svetlana Kuznetsova (World No 2 and 3 respectively) en route to the final, held hopes of providing competition for Henin. The signs were encouraging initially, when she blasted a forehand winner down the line to open the final and broke Henin's serve when the Belgian double-faulted on break point. But as it turned out, that was the only time she led. Soon the unforced errors came in flurries. She got a little nervous and couldn't control her serve. Henin kept up the pressure in the second set with a vast repertoire that ranged from delicate backhands to overhead smashes. Ivanovic, who was playing her first Grand Slam final, was simply overpowered. With 6 Grand Slam crowns, Henin has surpassed Venus Williams and Martina Hingis, only trailing behind Serena Williams' eight among active women. She is also the first top-seeded woman to win the French Open since Steffi Graf in 1996. What amazing figures she has piled up as a result of her skill and determination!