KEY POINTS:
Unseeded Frenchwoman Aravane Rezai might just have the crowd on her side in today's women's Classic final against Lindsay Davenport.
Rezai wore black from head to toe in homage to the All Blacks in yesterday's victory over local hero Marina Erakovic. Her wow-factor game and cheery on-court personality
also did plenty to win over the centre court crowd.
Serving for the match against Erakovic, Rezai responded to a catcall from the crowd by offering her racquet to the offender.
Ranked 90 at the start of the ASB Classic, Rezai was the second-to-last player to make the cut into the main draw. But she looked vastly better than that as she battered Erakovic into submission yesterday.
Despite enduring an off-year last year when her ranking slipped from a career-high 40, she still managed to topple Venus Williams and Maria Sharapova on successive days on her way to her first WTA final in Istanbul.
For her, she said, Davenport would hold no fear. "Of course Davenport was No 1 in the world but I don't care about that.
"I respect her and she is playing well but I have nothing to lose."
Davenport endured a few stutters in her straight sets victory over Tamira Paszek in her semifinal. At times her serve was erratic and Paszek also managed to expose her lack of mobility.
Running the ageing Davenport around would appear to be Rezai's best chance but she said she would not be overanalysing her opponent.
"Of course I try to move her, but actually I don't really have a tactic, I just try to be aggressive and play my game.
"If I am thinking on the court I will lose the point."
Davenport started slowly against Paszek but was little troubled after reversing an early break of serve. When Davenport was locked in, Paszek was made to look out of her depth but the American veteran also made a host of unforced errors.
"I still want to do a few things a little better," she said. "I've been missing a few more balls than I need to.
"I started to warm up and was able to serve a little bit harder in the latter stages of the first set and in the second.
"She did a good job of moving me around in the beginning but luckily I was able to be a bit more aggressive and take control."
Davenport did her best to deflect the impression that today's game will be just another day at the office but she was not overly successful.
"Luckily I've had a bit of experience in finals," she said.
Erakovic picked Davenport as the likely winner. "Davenport plays pretty much the same game as Rezai and I think she does it a lot better."
Fired-up self-belief arms Erakovic for Aussie Open
Marina Erakovic will enter qualifying at the Australian Open next week with renewed confidence after enjoying a breakthrough tournament in Auckland.
The Kiwi No 1 was overpowered 6-3, 7-5 by red-hot Frenchwoman Aravane Rezai in yesterday's ASB Classic semifinal, but she was far from outclassed.
Having notched victories against world No 22 Vera Zvonareva and American Ashley Harkleroad earlier in the week, her ranking is set to rise from 152 to the mid-130s.
But the self-belief earned during her run of battling displays was far more important than the ranking points and the US$6650 ($8623) payout.
"I know I am improving and the results are showing so hopefully it will continue like that," she said.
Having largely toiled away on the second-tier ITF circuit for several years, Erakovic now stands on the brink of forging a successful career on the lucrative WTA.
As well as demonstrating a game that boasts an improved serve and an efficient forehand, Erakovic showed she now has the temperament to compete in big matches.
"I was pretty pleased with how I coped with everything," she said.
"There were a lot of people and a lot of support.
"I enjoyed myself and that's something I started to do last year. This year, I had fun and just played tennis."
The next step for Erakovic would be to make the main draw of a Grand Slam. Her next chance will come in Melbourne in a little over a week.
Erakovic had her chances against Rezai but was always on the back foot against a power player with a devastating backhand. "She just went after everything. It is a difficult match against those type of players. They don't give you any rhythm."
Rezai broke Erakovic in the eighth game of the first set and closed it out 6-3. The second set looked to be going the same way before Erakovic broke back to level at 5-5.
But Erakovic dropped her serve to trail 5-6 and Rezai closed the match out on serve.
TODAY'S SCHEDULE
FINALS DAY
(from 1pm)
SOVEREIGN SINGLES
Aravene Rezai (FRA) v Lindsay Davenport (USA).
SOVEREIGN DOUBLES
Marina Muller (GER)/Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (CZE) v Mariya Koryttseva (UKR)/Lilia Osterloh (USA).
LINDSAY DAVENPORT
Nationality: United States
Age: 31
Height: 1.87m
Weight: 79kg
Career titles: 53 Highest ranking: 1
Current ranking: 72 Finals record: 53-38
Path to the final: Laura Granville 6-2 6-3, Anabel Medina Garrigues 6-1 4-6 6-0, Sara Errani 6-3 6-3, Tamira Paszek 6-4 6-3
ARAVANE REZAI
Nationality: French
Age: 20 Height: 1.65m
Weight: 62kg
Career titles: 0
Highest ranking: 40
Current ranking: 90
Finals record: 0-1
Path to the final: Shuai Zhang 6-3 6-3, Eleni Danilidou 7-5 6-4, Katarina Srebotnik 6-0 6-1, Marina Erakovic 6-3 7-5
