Gone in 62 minutes

The final was an embarrassing spectacle which left Pierce devastated. As her final backhand slapped into the net after 62 excruciating minutes she stood still, hand over her mouth, nowhere to hide. Henin-Hardenne appeared almost apologetic after the most one-sided final since Steffi Graf thrashed Natasha Zvereva 6-0 6-0 in 1988.

‘‘Mary is somebody I like very much and respect a lot. It was very difficult for her’’, the Belgian said. It’s a great victory. The public was fantastic, even though they were obviously for Mary.’’

The fans had come to crown a French champion five years after Pierce won in Paris for the first time. They had come to cheer her on as she defended their honour against neighbouring Belgium. They wanted to see the stubborn, courageous Pierce who had knocked the stuffing out of world number one Lindsay Davenport earlier in the week.

Instead they found a bundle of nervous ticks and gestures wrapped up in a bright pink tennis outfit.

‘‘It’s difficult to talk’’, the 30-year-old Pierce told the crowd, sobbing and shaking with emotion. ‘‘I’m sorry it didn’t last very long.’’

The tension at the beginning was palpable as Pierce, slowly bouncing the ball, brushing her hair from her eyes, smoothing her outfit, held for a 1-0 lead.

It was a promising start but proved to be an empty promise as the next six games flashed by in a blur of thigh-slapping, arm-waving gestures during which the Frenchwoman won just six more points. The crowd’s spirits were dampened, light drizzle began to fall and the umbrellas came out. All the while Henin-Hardenne swept winners past Pierce or the Frenchwoman sprayed errors around the arena and into the net. Trailing 1-0 in the second set Pierce returned a ball to a ballboy a little too firmly, forcing the child to take evasive action. It was the most accurate Pierce had been all match.

One point later she missed a simple smash from one metre from the net so badly even her own fans joined the Belgian contingent in laughing and whistling.

Pierce could do no right.

Still the stamping and pirouetting continued while Henin-Hardenne continued to crack the ball from side to side waiting for the error. She never had to wait long. Pierce played with her hair, she stared at her feet, she twirled her racket but she could never mount a challenge against her 23-year-old opponent. (Reuters)