Sharapova, Bartoli ease into last 8
Source: Agencies |
July 31, 2010, Saturday
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HOLDER Marion Bartoli advanced to the quarterfinals of the Bank of the West Classic in Stanford on Thursday with a 6-3, 6-4 win over former world No. 1 Ana Ivanovic, while Maria Sharapova also advanced to the last eight.
Russian Sharapova, a three-time grand slam winner, beat Belarus' Olga Govortsova 6-3, 6-3 while Maria Kirilenko defeated sixth seed Shahar Peer 6-4, 6-3.
American teenager Melanie Oudin lost 3-6, 1-6 to eighth seed Victoria Azarenka.
Sharapova dictated the action off the ground against the erratic Govortsova, and served and returned well enough to control most of the points.
"I stayed aggressive and made sure to have an extra something on my ball," said the fifth-seeded Sharapova, who will face second seed Elena Dementieva of Russia in the quarterfinals.
Frenchwoman Bartoli, who beat Venus Williams to win the 2009 Stanford title, served and returned aggressively against Ivanovic.
"I'm really pleased I was finally able to get past her," said Bartoli, who had lost all three of her previous meetings against the Serbian.
"I'm moving a lot better so I'm able to get the ball back with interest when she hits the ball hard. I managed to play the big points well and that's the type of matches I need this summer."
Bartoli will face Azarenka, who believes she can regain a place among the world's top 10. "I think I played very well," Azarenka said. "It was a little tough at the beginning with a couple of service breaks, but I felt strong the whole match."
Peer had beaten Kirilenko in New Zealand at the start of the season but this time the Russian was in control.
Kirilenko will meet third seed Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland in the quarterfinals, while top seed Samantha Stosur of Australia will play Yanina Wickmayer of Belgium.
In Los Angeles, Andy Murray was forced to three sets in his Los Angeles debut, beating American qualifier Tim Smyczek 6-1, 4-6, 6-2 in a second-round match at the Farmers Classic.
The top-seeded Scot received a wildcard into the event after world No. 2 Novak Djokovic withdrew last week for personal reasons. After a first-round bye, Murray had to work harder than most expected in his first match since losing to Rafael Nadal in the Wimbledon semifinals.
Smyczek, a 22-year-old ranked 192nd in the world, notched his first ATP Tour win with a straight-sets victory in the first round. He hung in early in the third set against the world's fourth-ranked player when there were breaks in the first three games before Murray took control.
"I hope to have a good run here," Murray said. "There were a lot of long rallies in the first and second sets. Hopefully, it will stand me in good stead."
Murray's quarterfinal opponent will be Alejandro Falla of Colombia, who beat No. 5 seed Ernests Gulbis of Latvia, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (10).
Fourth-seeded Feliciano Lopez of Spain beat Dudi Sela of Israel 7-6 (7), 6-4.
In the quarters, Lopez will play wildcard James Blake, who outlasted Benjamin Becker 7-5, 7-6(7).
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