TENNIS in DEPTH.

Marion Bartoli will be one of the combatants in Sunday’s women’s final at the $4.5 million BNP Paribas Open. The 15th-seeded Bartoli blew past 23rd-seeded Belgian Yanina Wickmayer 6-1, 6-3 in Friday’s quarterfinal action on the hardcourts at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. The French slugger prevailed in 1 hour, 25 minutes by ripping 10 aces and piling up five service breaks against the capable Wickmayer. The 26-year-old world No. 17 Bartoli will appear in her 12th career WTA final, seeking a sixth championship. She’ll perform in her first final since 2009, a year in which she captured a pair of titles in a trio of finales. For the fashion conscious fans it will be interesting to see if Bartoli and Sharapova wear the same dress, should Masha make the final.

The 2007 Wimbledon finalist Bartoli will meet the Caroline Wozniacki-Maria Sharapova victor in the title match. Wozniacki is the current world No. 1, while the 16th-seeded Sharapova is a former holder of the women’s top ranking. The former U.S. Open runner-up Wozniacki was last year’s Indian Wells runner- up to Serbian star Jelena Jankovic. The three-time major champion Sharapova titled here in the California desert back in 2006.

The 2011 Indian Wells champ will collect $700,000.

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