Mauresmo snares her fifth tournament title of season

She has won two straight tournaments and has a shot at being ranked No. 1.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
VILLANOVA, Pa. -- Amelie Mauresmo barely finished celebrating one title when she focused her sights on other goals: winning the WTA Tour Championships and finishing the season ranked No. 1.
Mauresmo shook off a slow start and beat Vera Zvonareva 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 Sunday to successfully defend her Advanta Championships title for her fifth tournament victory of 2004.
Mauresmo seems poised to make a splash this week in Los Angeles at the season-ending tour championships. Mauresmo has won two straight tournaments, including in Austria last week.
She considers herself the favorite heading to LA.
"Yeah, I guess so, when you win these kind of titles," she said. "I'm in shape, I feel confident on the court and my game is there."
Has chance to be No. 1
She has a shot at ending the season at No. 1, where she spent five weeks after the U.S. Open despite no Grand Slam titles.
"I'm getting closer and closer," said Mauresmo, second to Lindsay Davenport in the current rankings. "I don't put too much pressure on this. The most important thing for me was to reach it anytime during the year and during my career."
This was her 15th career title, with others this year coming in Berlin, Rome and Montreal.
Mauresmo dominated the sixth-seeded Zvonareva in the final two sets at the hard-court tournament.
Good performance
Mauresmo, playing with a taped left thigh after complaining of tightness Saturday, flustered the Russian with a couple of big overheads and some nice passing shots. Playing comfortably from the baseline, Mauresmo surprised Zvonareva and caught her off-balance when she approached the net.
"She knew what she had to do to win the match and maybe I was a little bit unlucky at some points," said Zvonareva, who's never beaten Mauresmo in five tries.
In doubles, third-seeded Alicia Molik and Lisa Raymond beat fourth-seeded Liezel Huber and Corina Morariu 7-5, 6-4. Raymond, a Wayne native, won the doubles final last year with Martina Navratilova.
Paris Masters
PARIS -- Marat Safin overwhelmed qualifier Radek Stepanek 6-3, 7-6 (5), 6-3 to win his record-tying third Paris Masters title.
Safin, the 2000 U.S. Open champion, claimed his 14th career championship. Stepanek was appearing in his first ATP Tour final and was trying to become the first qualifier to win a Masters Series tournament since 2001.
Bell Challenge
QUEBEC -- Martina Sucha beat Abigail Spears 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 Sunday to win the Bell Challenge for her second career title.
Sucha came into the tournament ranked No. 72, while Spears was 155th and had to qualify.
Sucha's only other WTA Tour title came at Hobart, Australia, in 2002.
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