Belgian tennis player Justine Henin-Hardenne, 26, tops women's tennis rankings becoming world No.1 after defeating Maria Sharapova 6-2 7-6 (7-5) to move through to the final of the WTA Tour Championship in Madrid.

Maria Sharapova, 19, remained at #2 spot.

Henin-Hardenne blazed through the opening set in just 34 minutes and raced out to a 5-3 lead in the second set. In those situations, Sharapova has been known to bring out her best, and this time was no different. She broke back and held for 5-all then rallied her way into a tie-break. There just wasn't enough gas left in the tank once there, however; she quickly fell behind 4-1, and although she managed to close in somewhat to 6-4, it was all over two points later.

"I felt a little sluggish," said Sharapova after the match, "And I tried. I mean from 5-3, I tried to find a way. I did feel like I was getting better towards the end of the match, but I still don't feel like my concentration was quite there... And against someone like Justine, that's not good." [1]

Justine Henin-Hardenne and former number one women's tennis player Amelie Mauresmo will square off for the Sony Ericsson Championships title on Sunday.

It's Justine Henin-Hardenne's first time at the top in over two years.

"It's going to be me and I'm very happy about that," Henin-Hardenne continued. "It's not easy to get to the finals of all four Grand Slams, and that's what I did. I've been very consistent, and I'm now in the final again. 2006 is almost done, and when I look back, I see only good things, even when I think about my tough matches in the Grand Slam finals. It's probably the best season of my career and I will enjoy it in the next two months." [1]