Safina powers on, Ivanovic heads home

Top seed Dinara Safina won at a canter to reach the French Open quarter-finals on Sunday but it will not be title-holder Ana Ivanovic she meets there after the Serb lost 6-2, 6-3 to Victoria Azarenka.

The 23-year-old Russian brushed aside the challenge of France’s Aravane Rezai 6-1, 6-0 in a centre-court mis-match and has conceded just five games in four matches. Also through to the last eight was comeback queen Maria Sharapova who dug deep for a fourth straight match to see off China’s Li Na 6-4, 0-6, 6-4.

She will next go up against Slovakia’s Dominika Cibulkova who had too much movement about the court and allround ability for Agnes Szavay of Hungary winning 6-2, 6-4.

Azaranka’s win over Ivanovic was no great surprise as she had won three titles this year already while Ivanovic has been laid low with injury and poor form which almost forced her to miss her title defence.

Two breaks of serve in the sixth and eighth games were enough to clinch the first set for the Arizona-based player and when she went 4-0 up in the second it was all but over.

With the crowd cheering for Ivanovic and jeering Azarenko, the Serb did manage two breaks of her own after that, but she could not hold onto her own serve allowing the Belarussian to close out the tie. Azarenka said she had not been upset by the crowd clearly favouring her opponent.

“It was expected because she was the champion, but I hope they will be little bit more for me now,” she said.

“It’s the first time I have made the quarter-finals (of a Grand Slam) and it’s a big step for me. “It will be tough against Safina because she has lost only one match on clay this year and has been killing people, but I will be ready.” Ivanovic said she had been feeling unwell from the middle of the first set.

AFP