Jelena Jankovic, set to regain the world No. 1 slot next week, defeated Vera Zvonareva in the quarter-finals of Stuttgart’s WTA event on Friday to book a semi-final with Venus Williams.
Jankovic held her nerve to win 7-6 (10/8), 7-6 (7/5) as Zvonareva — the bronze medal winner at the Beijing Olympic Games — produced some dogged resistance.
“That was a hard game, but I am pleased to be in the semi-finals,” said Jankovic, who will regain the world’s top ranking after Serena Williams lost in the second round. “It’s a great accomplishment to be world No. 1 and I don’t know anyone who is not happy about being the best in the world at something. But the competition is still fierce and you have to keep winning.”
Jankovic had to work hard for everything in the first set which took exactly an hour and the Serb star had to break back the Russian to force the tie-break.
Both players showed their frustration at missed opportunities, but the Serb star found a weakness in Zvonareva’s game and used the lob shot to devastating effect.
The Russian made her frustration work for her by storming into a 2-0 lead early in the second, but Jankovic kept applying the pressure to eventually take the second on a tie-break.
Earlier, Venus Williams admitted she felt the lure of a new sports car on offer to the winner after her win over Dinara Safina.
Sixth-seed Williams needed a little over an hour to beat the third seeded Russian 6-4, 6-2.
Williams admitted the prize of a Porsche 911 Carrera 4S Cabrio, worth US$98,500, was a tempting target as she bids to win today’s final.
“I love fast cars, I am hoping to win one here and take it for a drive after Sunday,” she said.
The first set was a tight affair, as Olympic silver medalist Safina matched Williams’ powerful service game.
But the second was a different story, with Safina struggling to make any impact as Williams showed her full array of shots to keep the Russian under constant pressure.
“She played 200 percent and I had to work really hard to beat her,” Williams said.
In the other semi-final, Nadia Petrova will meet Belarus teenager Victoria Azarenka.
Petrova, the 2006 champion, had a comfortable win over China’s Li Na, who knocked out Serena Williams on Wednesday, and claimed a 6-2, 6-3 win in just 68 minutes.
“After she beat Serena, I was expecting a hard game and it was a bit easier than I thought it was going to be,” Petrova said.
Azarenka trod a much tougher path to the last four as she knocked out Olympic champion Elena Dementieva after a marathon quarter-final that lasted 2 hours, 53 minutes. The 19-year-old Azarenka came out on top 7-6 (8/6), 3-6, 6-1.
“I just kept fighting,” Azarenka said. “She is such a good opponent, I had to fight for every ball, but my legs are pretty dead now.”
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