Azarenka knocks off Olympic champion Dementieva; Venus advances
STUTTGART, Germany -- Venus Williams beat third-seeded Dinara Safina 6-4, 6-2 at the Porsche Grand Prix on Friday to set up a semifinal with Jelena Jankovic, who will be No. 1 in next week's rankings.
Jankovic rallied from a break down in each set to edge seventh-seeded Vera Zvonareva 7-6 (8), 7-6 (5). This was the second time in two weeks Jankovic beat her.
In another quarterfinal, Olympic champion Elena Dementieva, seeded fourth, lost to 19-year-old Victoria Azarenka of Belarus 7-6 (6), 3-6, 6-1.
Azarenka, grunting loudly on almost every point, next will play another Russian in Nadia Petrova. Petrova, the 2006 Stuttgart champion, beat Li Na of China 6-2, 6-3.
This was the first time Williams played Safina, who has won four titles this year and risen to a career-high No. 3 ranking.
"I had to work very hard because she played at 200 percent," said Williams, who is seeded sixth. "It's very exciting to win against a player who has had such a great year."
Williams' only title this year was Wimbledon. She is playing in Stuttgart for the first time in 10 years and eyeing the red Porsche 911 sports car that is given to the champion.
"I love fast cars," Williams said. "I really hope to try it as the winner."
Williams broke for a 5-4 lead and hit a service winner to take the first set. She jumped ahead 4-0 in the second. She also used her big reach to win points at the net.
"I feel more comfortable at the net now," Williams said. "I have a volley."
Jankovic also beat Zvonareva on the way to winning the China Open last week and now holds a 5-3 career edge over the Russian. She will take over the top ranking Monday because of Serena Williams' second-round loss to Li.
Jankovic, who lost the U.S. Open final to Serena, is seeking her third title of the year. The Serb leads the tour with 18 quarterfinal appearances this year and is in her 10th semifinal.
At 5-5 in the second set, Jankovic required treatment for a broken toe nail on her left foot.
"I had no idea how to get through," she said. "But I came back with some aces and I fought until the end. I really wanted to finish it in the second set."
Jankovic was helped when Zvonareva slipped on second match point and the Serb put away a winner.
Azarenka is ranked No. 17 and has yet to win on the tour. Dementieva has 10 career titles and has returned to her highest ranking of No. 4, which she reached three years ago.
Dementieva's many errors in the third set allowed Azarenka to race to a 5-0 lead. Dementieva saved three match points to win her first game, but then committed two straight errors and netted a backhand to lose after nearly three hours.
"We had many long rallies," Azarenka said. "I tried to fight for every ball. I played very well."
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press
