Bookmark this page to:        
Current rating: 0 (0 ratings)
Top Seeds Jankovic, Wozniacki Swept In Cincinnati
By Adrianna Outlaw
© Tony Chang/Chang Photography
(August 12, 2010) The red needle inside the on-court thermometer in Cincinnati received a workout on a scorching day and no weather vane was necessary to measure the upset winds that saw defending champion Jelena Jankovic and second-seeded Caroline Wozniacki swept away in succession. The top two seeds and sixth-seeded Vera Zvonareva all suffered straight-set sweeps at the Western & Southern Financial Group Women's Open today.
The top-seeded Jankovic is one of the most reliable returners in women's tennis, but did not get a sniff at a break point as big-serving qualifier Akgul Amanmuradova delivered a superlative serving performance, striking 12 aces and no double faults in a 7-6(3), 6-4 upset.
Wozniacki, who felt the jet lag flying in from Europe on Monday, looked lethargic in a 6-4, 6-1 loss to Marion Bartoli. The 16th-seeded French woman packed a potent punch on serve in crunching nine aces and erasing two of the three break points she faced in a one hour, 21-minute win.
In the most competitive match of the day, Yanina Wickmayer edged eighth-seeded Na Li, 2-6, 6-2, 7-6(4) in two hours, 13 minutes. The 12th-seeded Belgian plays Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the quarters. Pavlyuchenkova pounded 10 aces and took advantage of nine double faults from Shahar Peer to work out a 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 win in a draining duel that spanned two hours, 45 minutes. Given the blistering conditions, the Wickmayer-Pavlyuchenkova quarterfinal figures to be a test of conditioning and will.
While the top two are done, former World No. 1 players Ana Ivanovic and Maria Sharapova both looked sharp in steamrolling into the last eight. Sharapova slammed San Diego finalist Agnieszka Radwanska, 6-2, 6-3.
"Obviously upsets are part of the game and just shows how tough tournaments are from the first round on and you have to be ready," Sharapova said. "You've got to be ready and be strong from the start."
The three-time Grand Slam champion beat Radwanska in last month's Stanford semifinal. That match went three sets and Sharapova was determined to play first-strike tennis and limit the length of the points against Radwanska, who used her court craft and ability to strike on the run to upset the then second-ranked Sharapova at the 2007 US Open.
"You have to be patient, but if the rally is going over seven balls against her then you're doing something wrong because she loves those points where she's running you and playing the cat and mouse game," Sharapova said.
Playing with authoritative aggression, Ivanovic did not drop serve and surrendered only six points on her first serve in overpowering Elena Vesnina, 6-0, 6-3 in 64 minutes. Ivanovic's win came before Jankovic took the court, setting up the prospect of a blockbuster all-Serbian quarterfinal clash between the former Fed Cup teammates, who are not exactly on each other's speed dial. But the 6-foot-3 Amanmuradova, who can get up so high on serve it looks like she could slam dunk a tennis ball, spoiled that prospect in sending Jankovic to her third loss in her last five matches.
Wozniacki conquered Czech Klara Zakopalova 6-2 7-6(5) to capture the inaugural e-Boks Sony Ericsson Open in Copenhagen on Sunday. She was often forced into defending off her back foot by the flat-hitting Bartoli, who beat Wozniacki for the second time in five meetings.
World No. 20 Bartoli will face Sharapova for a spot in Saturday's semifinals. The 10th-seeded Sharapova is 3-0 lifetime vs. Bartoli, winning all six sets they've played though they have not squared off in three years.
"We haven't played in a while so it's gonna be a completely different match," Sharapova said. "She steps in and likes to rip the ball and go for her shots. I'm just going to have to be ready and be aggressive."
Flavia Pennetta advanced to her fourth consecutive quarterfinal with a 6-4, 6-3 decision over Zvonareva. Pennetta broke Zvonareva's will in fighting off six match points in 3-6, 7-6(6), 6-0 victory in the fourth round of the 2009 US Open. She now holds a 3-2 edge in their head-to-head series.
In the quarterfinals, the 11th-seeded Italian will face either fourth-seeded Kim Clijsters or American wild card Christina McHale, who knocked off 15th-seeded Nadia Petrova in the opening round.
No data found
|