Eastbourne (England): French Open champion Justine Henin-Hardenne won a closely fought final at the Eastbourne grasscourt tournament on Saturday, beating Russian Anastasia Myskina 4-6 6-1 7-6.
The Belgian world No 3 squandered three championship points in the third set to allow Myskina to take the contest into a tiebreak.
At 6-4 up in the tiebreak, Henin-Hardenne put a backhand long but she hit a forehand winner on the next point to clinch the match in exactly two hours.
"It is the best preparation I could get for Wimbledon," said the 24-year-old.
Henin-Hardenne, whose seven previous wins over Myskina included a straight-sets victory in the last 16 at Roland Garros earlier this month, started well, breaking the fifth-seeded Russian in the third game.
Myskina, French Open champion in 2004, broke back for 4-4, helped by a double fault from the Belgian and broke again in the 10th game as the two players engaged in a power-hitting battle from the baseline.
Myskina hit a double fault herself to give away a break in the opening game of the second set and was broken again to love in the third.
At 5-1 up, Henin-Hardenne earned three set points on the Russian's serve and converted the first with a backhand service return that clipped the net cord and dribbled over.
The long third set involved two breaks of service apiece before Henin-Hardenne went 0-40 up on Myskina's serve.
Three successive errors by the Belgian allowed Myskina to survive and the game went six times to deuce before the Russian levelled at 5-5.
Henin-Hardenne lost in the first round at Wimbledon last year, when she was carrying hamstring injuries, and said she was happy that Eastbourne had helped her to make the swift change from clay to grass this year.
"I have had a wonderful week here," said Henin, who beat defending champion and compatriot Kim Clijsters in three sets in the semi-finals.
"It is very good that I had these very intense matches before Wimbledon," added the Belgian, who faces China's Yuan Meng in the first round at the All England Club on Monday.
Myskina, a Wimbledon quarter-finalist last year, was also encouraged.
"This was a great tournament -- I played really, really well even if I lost today and it shows that I have a good year ahead of me," the Russian said.
"I am really happy that I am playing well again and I am really hungry and I want to win again."
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