Henin, Stosur to meet in Stuttgart final

Former world number one Justine Henin once again proved her clay-court credentials on Saturday as she booked her place in the final of Stuttgart's WTA tournament with victory over Shahar Peer.

Henin produced an impressive array of shots and showed her fitness to secure a 6-3, 6-2 semifinal win in just 74 minutes.

She later admitted she was suffering from a lack of sleep and a cold, but will play Australia's Samantha Stosur in Sunday's final of her first clay tournament for two years.

This will be Henin's 60th WTA final as she looks to claim her first tournament victory since coming out of retirement in January after her 18-month hiatus. She last won the Stuttgart title in 2007.

"It's great, I am just very, very happy to be in the final here again," said Henin.

"Some of the games were very close and I played well at the important moments.

"I didn't have the ideal preparation and couldn't get to sleep until 4am as I didn't finish until late last night.

"I was feeling a little bit sick this morning and didn't have so much energy.

"But I got on with my job and I found the energy, I am happy to have been pretty consistent.

"Physically, my muscles felt pretty good from Friday and dealt with the situation today, despite the tiredness.

"I am happy with the way I am playing, I am getting better with every game and I am playing my best tennis when I am aggressive, which is something I need to keep doing."

Having walked away from tennis in May 2008, Henin came out of retirement in January and is in great form here at the indoor tournament.

She will bid to win a fifth French Open title on clay at Roland Garros next month.

With seven Grand Slam titles under her belt, Henin was too strong for birthday girl Peer, who turned 23 on Saturday, as she needed just 37 minutes to win the first set, breaking Peer three times in the process.

Having raced into a 4-1 lead in the second, Henin was never threatened by her opponent and although Peer is ranked 20th in the world, four places higher than Henin's current ranking, there was an obvious gulf in class.

The 27-year-old Henin will now meet fellow wildcard Stosur, who has won 11 straight games on clay, in the final after the Australian enjoyed a 7-5, 6-3 win over qualifier Anna Lapushchenkova.

"I hope it will be my first title, that would be fantastic," said Henin.

"Playing in a final is always emotional and I still need to get used to it again, even if I had a lot of finals experience in the past."

Her opponent Stosur is in the form of her life having won the Charleston tournament and both of her Fed Cup rubbers with a second title now on offer.

But Lapushchenkova, ranked 138th in the world, gave her a scare when she raced into a 5-2 lead, only to lose the first set as Stosur's composure saw her through to a 7-5, 6-3 win.

"It was a bit tricky out there for both of us," said Stosur.

"Neither of us got into a good rhythm, she has had a very good week and made me work hard today.

"When I fell behind in the first set, I just tried to keep going and take every opportunity which came my way."

This will be Stosur's first match against Henin.

"We have never played each other before, so it's something new for both of us," said Stosur.

"She has been dominant on clay for the six years before she retired, so it's going to be quite a challenge."