Mauresmo, Henin-Hardenne set up another meeting in final

WIMBLEDON, England -- Amelie Mauresmo could sense another Wimbledon semifinal slipping away with each of Maria Sharapova's piercing shrieks and powerful shots.

And then, slightly out of character, Mauresmo won a key point and let out a scream of her own, a bit of a bellow to release the tension.

It worked.

The top-seeded Mauresmo gave away a big lead Thursday before collecting herself to pull out a 6-3, 3-6, 6-2 victory over 2004 Wimbledon champion Sharapova and reach her first final at the All England Club.

"It was not perfect," said Mauresmo, who entered the day 0-3 in Wimbledon semifinals, "but it still was a win."

Her opponent Saturday will be No. 3 Justine Henin-Hardenne, who overcame problems with her serve and trademark backhand to beat No. 2 Kim Clijsters 6-4, 7-6 (4), moving within one win of a career Grand Slam.

Mauresmo appeared to be collapsing Thursday. Up a set and leading 3-1 in the second, Mauresmo got to love-40 on Sharapova's serve: That meant three chances to go up 4-1.

But after Sharapova erased one break point with a swinging forehand volley, Mauresmo made consecutive forehand errors to let the occasion slip. And then it got worse: Mauresmo double-faulted twice in each of her next two service games, part of a five-game run that handed Sharapova the set.

Late in the troublesome second set, she saved a break point with a service winner and responded with that cathartic yell of celebration, at least as loud as the grunts that accompany so many of Sharapova's groundstrokes.

"I probably felt I needed to let it go, let it out a little bit," Mauresmo said. "Didn't help me win the second set, but maybe helped me a little bit in that third."

Mauresmo broke for a 2-0 lead in the final set, and soon it was 4-0. Sharapova got to 4-2, then earned a break point that would have made it 4-3. But Mauresmo gathered herself and drilled an ace at 112 mph, then broke in the next game to end the 2-hour, 13-minute match.

Rafael Nadal, a two-time French Open champion, reached his first Wimbledon semifinal by eliminating No. 22 Jarkko Neiminen 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 in a postponed quarterfinal Thursday. Nadal plays Australian Open runner-up Marcos Baghdatis today, while three-time champion Roger Federer faces unseeded Jonas Bjorkman for a spot in Sunday's final.

The women's title match will be a rematch of January's Australian Open final, where Mauresmo collected her first Grand Slam trophy but was denied a chance to feel what it's like to win championship point at a major: Henin-Hardenne quit in the second set, citing an upset stomach.