World number one Justine Henin brought Yan Zi's Cinderella run to an end with a 6-3, 6-0 win at the Toronto Cup on Saturday to set up a dream final with second seed Jelena Jankovic.
While Henin raced into her seventh final of the season in just 71 minutes, the third ranked Jankovic needed over two hours on a chilled centre court to tame scrappy Frenchwoman Tatiana Golovin 5-7, 6-3, 6-2.
A Henin and Jankovic final may lack the pizzazz of a Maria Sharapova-Serena Williams showdown but their records this season are second to none, with the battling Belgian claiming five titles and the Serbian four.
Still a little rusty from a five week layout, Henin will enter Sunday's match as the favourite having swept all six head-to-head meetings with Jankovic.
"I've lost so many times against her, I've never beaten her but maybe I can do it tomorrow," Jankovic told reporters. "I have nothing to lose.
"We've had a lot of tough matches, except at the French Open where she beat me in two sets. The other times a few points decided here and there."
Jankovic looked headed for an easy win over the 19th ranked Golovin, leading 5-2 and serving for the opening set.
But Golovin hit back with three breaks sweeping through the next five games to take a 1-0 lead.
The Serb went 4-2 up in the second set but this time held the advantage to level the match.
Back in command, Jankovic secured the early break again in the third set to go up 3-1 and kept her French opponent out of the match.
Playing her first event since a semi-final loss at Wimbledon, Henin wasted little time in stamping her authority on her semi-final, breaking Yan at the first opportunity.
Yan, however, was not intimidated by the six-times grand slam winner and immediately broke back.
The two players traded breaks again but with the opening set level at 3-3, Henin's class surfaced and she overwhelmed Yan by sweeping the next nine games.
Yan, whose 169 world ranking was so low that she was an alternate in the Toronto qualifying draw, was the revelation of the tournament after producing a string of upsets.
The 22-year-old doubles specialist claimed several big-name scalps, including defending champion and world number four Ana Ivanovic and Wimbledon finalist Marion Bartoli, to become the only the third Chinese player to reach the semi-final of a WTA top tier event.
"I was very relaxed but she (Henin) played so well I had no chance," Yan said.
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