Lindsay Davenport continued her comeback and upset second-ranked Ana Ivanovic 6-4, 6-2 on Sunday in the third round at the Sony Ericsson Open.
Davenport left the women's tour in late 2006 to have her first child, then came back in the middle of last year. The three-time Grand Slam champion is 17-3 this year with two titles, and she rated the win over Ivanovic as her best since returning.
"It's quite rewarding," said Davenport, 31. "In this comeback, for lack of better words, I've not made a fool of myself. I've done pretty well for my age and for what I've been through. Obviously days like today just give me more incentive to keep going."
PHOTO: AFP
Hampered by injuries in recent years, Davenport is playing at Key Biscayne for the first time since 2003. She next faces No. 13 Dinara Safina, who rallied past No. 18 Sybille Bammer 4-6, 6-1, 6-0.
Serena and Venus Williams also reached the fourth round, as did top-seeded Justine Henin.
Four-time champion Serena Williams had the toughest time, overcoming 60 unforced errors and a 3-0 deficit in the second set to beat No. 27 Flavia Pennetta 6-7 (6), 6-3, 6-2.
Serena Williams said a rain delay when she trailed 3-2 in the second set helped.
"My mom called me," she said. "She knows my game really well. She was like, `Stay up. Don't get behind the baseline.' I'm like, `Are you here? Are you watching on TV?' She's like, `No, but I know you.' So I was like, `OK.' I just tried to listen."
No. 3 Svetlana Kuznetsova also needed a comeback. In the second set she overcame a 5-2 deficit and a match point, and she swept the final 11 games to beat No. 25 Victoria Azarenka 1-6, 7-5 6-0.
Venus Williams, seeded sixth, defeated wild card Marina Erakovic 6-2, 6-1. Henin beat Sara Errani by the same score.
No. 4 Jelena Jankovic won her second match in 18 hours, beating Lucie Safarova 6-2, 6-1. The victory came after Jankovic played past midnight Saturday night, saving five match points in a third-set tiebreaker to beat Sofia Arvidsson.
On the men's side, No. 2 Rafael Nadal never faced a break point and beat Nicolas Kiefer 6-2, 6-4. No. 9 James Blake outlasted 35-year-old Fabrice Santoro, 6-3, 6-7 (4), 6-4.
The 20-year-old Ivanovic was the Australian Open runner-up and won Indian Wells this month. But her game unraveled against Davenport, who repeatedly swatted deep service returns and broke six times.
"She played like a top 10 player easily today," Ivanovic said. "I must say I haven't played against many players who can return so well and so deep, so she puts a lot of pressure on my serve."
Davenport relied on her customary power but also showed surprising finesse, winning 13 of 14 points at the net.
"I picked the right shots to come in on," she said, laughing.
Henin had more trouble with the sunny, 29℃ weather than with her opponent. The Belgian won 19 of 20 points on her first serve and she was glad to get off the court after only 63 minutes.
"It's very hot out there," Henin said. "It was quite difficult to breathe. I usually like when it's hot, but I haven't been in this heat for a long time. Even in Australia it wasn't that hot this year, so it's quite difficult."
Henin swept the final three games of the first set and won the final four games of the second set. She's a seven-time Grand Slam champion, but is seeking her first title at Key Biscayne.
Williams is trying for her fourth Key Biscayne title, and her first since 2001. She has lost only 10 games in two matches and was pleased with her performance.
"I played consistent and not too many errors, which is great for me," she said. "I was just winning all of the important points."
Ai Sugiyama edged No. 7 Daniela Hantuchova 6-4, 6-7 (8), 7-5. Other seeded women eliminated were No. 11 Patty Schnyder, No. 22 Katarina Srebotnik and No. 24 Amelie Mauresmo.
On the men's side, No. 16 Paul-Henri Mathieu beat No. 20 Carlos Moya 7-6 (1), 7-5. Dmitry Tursunov rallied past No. 32 Feliciano Lopez 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.
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