Long Island, New York, Aug 24: Top seed and defending champion Paradorn Srichaphan of Thailand cruised into the final of the TD Waterhouse Cup, needing just 57 minutes to dispose of Germany's Nicolas Kiefer 6-0 6-2.
Paradorn dominated his opponent yesterday with superior shot-making ability as he moved on to today's final against American James Blake, who crushed seventh seed Younes el Aynaoui of Morocco 6-3 6-1.
Blake didn't take much longer than Paradorn -- winning his match in just 59 minutes -- as both players appear to be well rested and confident heading into the final of the last warm-up event for the US Open.

''Every ball that I hit today went exactly where I wanted,'' Paradorn said. ''I have a significant amount of confidence right now and that comes out on the court.''

In winning this event a year ago, the Thai picked up his first ATP tour title and has not lost a set in an impressive defence.



''I feel comfortable here,'' Paradorn said. ''When I stepped on the court in the first-round it felt right.''



Kiefer admitted he never got into the match right from the outset. ''I didn't have the best feeling today,'' Kiefer said. ''Paradorn started quickly today and I was playing catch-up the entire time.''



Blake won his 10th hardcourt match in 13 outings this year in dominating el Aynaoui, who appeared drained after getting little sleep on Thursday after the birth of his baby son.



It's the first finals appearance this year for Blake, who has defeated Paradorn in all three of their previous meetings.



The last time the two met -- in the finals at Washington, D.C., in 2002 -- Blake won in three sets for his only victory in six years on the ATP tour. He just hopes to play as aggressively in the final as he did yesterday.



''I'm going to go after Paradorn the same way,'' Blake said. ''His serve is his big weapon and he can hit winners from anywhere. I've got to take that away.''


Bureau Report