SPORTS

MARBELLA: Second seed Flavia Pennetta needed less than an hour to crush fellow Italian Sara Errani 6-1 6-1 on Saturday and claim a place in the final of the Andalucia Open clay court tournament.

Pennetta faces Carla Suarez Navarro on Sunday after the Spanish eighth seed beat fifth-seeded compatriot Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez 2-6 6-3 6-2 to reach the final for a second straight year.

"I think Sara was more tense than normal but she's young and plays well and will have many more chances to beat me," world number 16 Pennetta said of her 22-year-old friend Errani.

"Matches against friends are very difficult, especially mentally," she told a news conference.

Pennetta has played Suarez Navarro, who lost to Jelena Jankovic of Serbia in last year's final, twice previously with each player winning once.