Ivanovic avoids early exit

 

Originally published on: 26/02/10 12:03

Ivanovic, who received a first-round bye as one of the top four seeds, was upset in the second round at last week’s Pan Pacific Open by the then world number 20 Nadia Petrova.

Ivanovic, who is fourth in the world rankings, wasted no time taking the lead against Cornet, winning three of 11 break points in the first set.

The 20-year-old French Open champion let up slightly in the second set but recovered in time to earn the victory in straight sets during her first career meeting with Cornet.

Ivanovic’s quarter-final opponent is China’s Zheng Jie, a 6-1 6-2 winner over Ai Sugiyama of Japan.

A potential semi-final opponent for Ivanovic is Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova, who has had a successful year, but has been unable to claim a tournament title.

The fourth-seeded Kuznetsova took a step in the right direction on Thursday, scoring a 6-2 6-3 victory over compatriot Alla Kudryavtseva.

She advanced to take on Slovakia’s Dominika Cibulkova, who upset eighth-seeded Russian Anna Chakvetadze 6-3 6-2, during their second-round match.

Like Kuznetsova, fellow Russian Vera Zvonereva, the fifth seed, booked her place in the quarter-finals with a 7-6 (7/5) 6-2 victory against Italian Francesca Schiavone.

In other second-round action, Anabel Medina Garrigues of Spain earned a 6-2 6-2 victory over defending champion Agnes Szavay of Hungary.

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