Playing the attacking tennis that earned him the No. 1 ranking before an injury, Marcelo Rios beat Gustavo Kuerten on Saturday to reach the final of the Italian Open for the second straight year.
Rios won 6-0, 7-5 in less than an hour, leading the Brazilian to say: "Rios is the best player this year."Rios, ranked No. 3, will face unseeded but streaking Spaniard Albert Costa in Sunday's final on the red clay of the Foro Italico. Costa beat compatriot Alberto Berasategui 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 for his 11th straight match victory.
The final will be a match of contrasting styles. Costa, a traditional clay-court specialist seeking to wear down his opponent in long rallies from the baseline will face a classic shotmaker unafraid of rushing the net.
Though still lacking a Grand Slam title, Rios wrested the top ranking from Pete Sampras until a left elbow injury sidelined him for five weeks.
There was no sign of the injury Saturday, although Rios said he still had some pain.
"I'm still not 100 percent, but I feel better every day," Rios said.
He served strongly, moved Kuerten around and consistently hit the lines with his ground strokes.
The Chilean won the first set in only 22 minutes, then stayed even with Kuerten in the second set until making the decisive break. He went to match point with a superb lunging volley and won when the former French Open champion hit a backhand into the net.
Rios lost in last year's final to Alex Corretja, another Spanish base-liner.
"Last year I played well but this year I've improved," said Rios, adding that his brief stint as No. 1 boosted his confidence.
Costa, ranked No. 20, has not lost a match since April 23. He won the tournament at Hamburg, Germany, a week ago against a weaker field than Rome.
Even Costa expressed admiration for Rios' ability to play well on hardcourts and grass as well as clay. "He's different from Spanish players," Costa said.
GERMAN OPEN: Spain's Conchita Martinez ended the run of flashy teen-ager Anna Kournikova at the German Open Saturday in Berlin.
But Martinez, a 1994 Wimbledon champion who believes tour veterans are being ignored in favor of the teen sensations, gets to face yet another teen-ager in Sunday's final.
Martinez swept the first set in only 19 minutes against a nervous Kournikova, slowing the pace with soft shots and slices, and won 6-0, 6-1.
"The young players are coming on strong, but we're still here," Martinez said. "I'm only 26. When we play well, we have our chances."
Martinez will face French qualifier Amelie Mauresmo, 18, who needed six match points and 2 hours, 27 minutes, to beat world No. 3 Jana Novotna, 7-5, 5-7, 6-4.
Mauresmo also upset No. 2 Lindsay Davenport in the second round and became the lowest-ranked player ever at No. 65 to beat two world top three players at the same event.
She also was the first qualifier to reach a tournament final in the tour's elite events.