Maria Sharapova breezed past Iveta Benesova of the Czech Republic at the Pan Pacific Open yesterday to stay on course for a potential final showdown against Jelena Jankovic.
The Russian former world No. 1 shrugged off a service break deficit in each set before scoring a 6-4, 7-5 victory to advance.
Sharapova, who lost the opening game after a double fault, hit an easy forehand winner at the net to make it 4-4 in the eighth before taking the following two games and the set.
PHOTO: AFP
The 22-year-old struggled with her serve in the second set, relying instead on a number of sizzling winners from Benesova’s second serve.
Seventh seed Serb Jankovic, another former world No. 1, powered her way through to a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Marion Bartoli, putting an end to her match-losing streak against the French 14th seed.
Fifteenth seed Li Na earned a 7-6 (9/7), 4-6, 7-6 (7/4) victory over Victoria Azarenka of Belarus to earn a match against Jankovic while 11th seed Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland whipped Magdalena Rybarikova of Slovakia 6-3, 6-1 and plays Sharapova next.
■SIMON BEATS KEVIN KIM
AFP, BANGKOK
Gilles Simon of France tested his chronic sore knee with a 6-2, 6-2 defeat of American Kevin Kim while retiring Russian Marat Safin ticked up another tournament loss yesterday as he winds down his career at the Thailand Open.
Simon said that he remains concerned about his problem knee.
“I really need a lot of recovery after my matches. It’s a lot of icing and rest. Everything depends on my knee,” he said.
Swiss qualifier Marco Chiudinelli ended Safin’s run with a 6-3, 7-6 (7/4) win.
“I’m a little disappointed. It should have gone the other way,” said the Russian, who will end his career at the Paris Masters next month.
“I may be retiring, but I still want to win. I don’t want to give away any matches. I really hate to lose,” Safin said.
In other matches German Andreas Beck defeated Donald Young of the US, 6-1, 6-7 (3/7), 6-4 while eighth seed John Isner beat Germany’s Mischa Zverev 7-6 (7/5), 6-4.
■MONFILS, BERDYCH WIN
AFP, KUALA LUMPUR
Frenchman Gael Monfils beat Martin Vassallo Arguello 6-4, 6-2 at the Malaysia Open yesterday, setting up a quarter-final with top seed Nikolay Davydenko.
Czech sixth seed Tomas Berdych reached the last eight, but had to go the distance to overcome German Simon Greul 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 at the Putra stadium.
Berdych fired nine aces and saved the only two break points as he raced to post the win in just over two hours of battle.
Taiwan’s top women’s badminton doubles duo, Hsieh Pei-shan (謝沛珊) and Hung En-tzu (洪恩慈), achieved a straight-sets victory over Japan’s Kaho Osawa and Mayui Tanabe at the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Super 300 Macau Open on Sunday. The Taiwanese pair won the final 21-18, 21-12, marking the duo’s second title this year after their win at the BWF Super 300 Taipei Open in May. The match on Sunday was their first encounter with the Japanese duo, ranked No. 63 in the world. Hsieh and Hung, ranked No. 12, began the opening game well. Hung, who plays left-handed, performed strongly at both the net and the
Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko upset top-seeded Coco Gauff 6-1, 6-4 on Saturday night to reach the National Bank Open quarter-finals. “Your support was incredible,” Mboko told the crowd in French after a chorus of “Ole, Ole, Ole” chants echoed around the venue. “I’m really happy to win today ... It’s incredible. I’m so happy to beat such a great champion.” Gauff dropped to 2-3 since winning the French Open. She followed the major victory with opening losses in Berlin and Wimbledon, then overcame double-fault problems to win two three-set matches in Montreal. Gauff had five double-faults on Saturday after having 23 in
Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen on Thursday said that he is staying with the Red Bull team next year, ending months of speculation over his future. “Some people just like to stir the pot, some people just like to create drama, but, for me, it’s always been quite clear, and also for next year,” the four-time champion said ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix. “I’m discussing with the team already the plans — the things that we want to change for next year, so that means that I’m also staying with the team for next year,” he said. Verstappen has a contract with
Jobe Bellingham on Tuesday admitted to having “anxieties” on following in brother Jude’s footsteps after joining Borussia Dortmund in the summer. Jobe Bellingham, 19, is two years younger than Jude Bellingham, who joined Real Madrid in 2023 after three years at Dortmund. A centerpiece of the England national team, Jude Bellingham has emerged as one of the best players in the world in recent seasons. The younger Jobe Bellingham joined Dortmund in June from Sunderland after their promotion to the English Premier League. He admitted he understood what the perception would be ahead of the move to Germany. “It’s something you do think about.
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