MADRID, Spain -- Russians Maria Sharapova and Anna Chakvetadze won three-set matches Thursday to reach the semifinals of the Sony Ericsson Championships.
Sharapova's 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 win over countrywomen Svetlana Kuznetsova also put Ana Ivanovic in the semifinals. Sharapova will play Ivanovic on Friday in the their final Red Group match, with the winner facing top-ranked Justine Henin.
Henin was undefeated in the Yellow Group, routing Wimbledon finalist Marion Bartoli 6-0, 6-0 on Thursday in the first victory at love in the WTA season-ending championship's 35-year history.
Bartoli replaced Australian Open champion Serena Williams, who withdrew with a left knee injury
she aggravated in her brief opening match Wednesday.Chakvetadze, a first-time qualifier in the elite eight-women event, hung on to beat third-ranked Jelena Jankovic 6-4, 0-6, 6-3.
Sharapova, ranked sixth, pulled away from second-ranked Kuznetsova with breaks in the fifth game of both the second and third sets. Sharapova improved to 4-3 against Kuznetsova, with three of those wins at the WTA's season-ending championship.
"I thought I did a good job in the first set, I had a little less match experience than her at the end but I stayed together, stayed tough and
came through," Sharapova said.She reached the semifinals for the fourth straight time since winning the championship in 2004.
"I'm really happy I didn't just stay home and quit and not come out here," said Sharapova, who came to Madrid with an oft-injured right shoulder. "I'm good, this is really good for me. This will only make me physically stronger."
"I'm really happy I didn't just stay home and quit and not come out here," said Sharapova, who came to Madrid with an oft-injured right shoulder. "I'm good, this is really good for me. This will only make me physically stronger."
Kuznetsova managed only 15 winners to Sharapova's 40 but broke in the 12th game to take the first set."I had my chances in the second set and I didn't use them," Kuznetsova said.
Henin hit 30 winners to Bartoli's two and was happy to defeat the Frenchwoman in their first match since the Wimbledon semifinals.
"It was a great one, almost everything was perfect tonight," Henin said. "I had a lot of determination, I wanted to take my revenge."
Chakvetadze took advantage of Janokovic's errors to break her in the 10th for the first set.
After a talk with her coach, Jankovic came out aggressively in the second with a break of serve and didn't let up, dominating from the baseline and the net to take the next seven games.
After a talk with her coach, Jankovic came out aggressively in the second with a break of serve and didn't let up, dominating from the baseline and the net to take the next seven games.
But a double fault ended the run as the Russian, a winner of four titles this season, broke back to tie it at 1-1 in the third.
Chakvetadze sent a backhand out of reach down the line to break her fellow first-time qualifier to love for a 3-1 advantage. She clinched it when Jankovic sailed her 26th unforced error over the baseline.
"I don't think we played 100 percent, a very up-and-down match," Chakvetadze said.
On Friday, Jankovic plays Bartoli and Kuznetsova faces Daniela Hantuchova to wrap up group play before the semifinals begin on Saturday.
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