Madrid, May 11 (IANS/RIA Novosti): Russia's Maria Sharapova advanced to the semifinals at the Madrid Open after a straight sets victory over Kaia Kanepi of Estonia.
Sharapova, the world No. 2, easily took the first set but had to battle through several rallies against Kanepi, ranked 51 in the world, eventually winning the quarterfinals 6-2, 6-4 in an hour and 22 minutes Friday.
The Russian will next face the winner of the match between world No. 6 Angelique Kerber of Germany and Serbia’s Ana Ivanovic.
Sharapova has a 4-1 career record against Kerber and has won six of the last eight matches against the lower-ranked Ivanovic.