Tennis
Zheng Jie rallies into quarters
(AP)
Updated: 2006-03-28 09:10
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Zheng Jie overcame a slow start to beat Jill Craybas of the US 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 at Nasdaq-100 Open on Monday, becoming the first Chinese to enter the quarterfinals of this major WTA tournament.
 Zheng Jie hits a forehand during a game against Jill Craybas of US. Zheng Jie won 2-6, 6-2, 6-3. [sina] |
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Maria Sharapova also earned a berth by beating Russian compatriot Maria Kirilenko 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 on Monday.
Seeded fourth, Sharapova committed 43 unforced errors, but only five in the final set against the 20th-seeded Kirilenko.
"I basically just tried to hang in there," Sharapova said. "I wasn't playing my best tennis, for sure, but I started to pick it up in the third."
Sharapova won her first title of the year on March 18 at Indian Wells. She was the runner-up at Key Biscayne last year to Kim Clijsters, who was upset on Saturday in the second round.
No. 6-seeded Elena Dementieva, runner-up to Sharapova at Indian Wells, was upset by No. 22 Tatiana Golovin of France 6-2, 6-1. Dementieva lost 13 of 17 second-serve points, including seven with double faults.
Advancing with Golovin and Sharapova were No. 12 Svetlana Kuznetsova, No. 21 Ai Sugiyama
In men's third-round play, No. 4 Andy Roddick dominated with his serve to beat No. 31 Fernando Verdasco 6-3, 6-4. Roddick won all 18 first-serve points in the opening set.
He'll next play German qualifier Simon Greul, who won only four points in the first set, then rallied to beat Tim Henman 0-6, 6-1, 7-5.
James Blake hit 41 winners and beat No. 23 Jarkko Nieminen of Finland 6-3, 4-6, 6-1. Seeded ninth, Blake broke serve six times and needed only 22 minutes to take the final set.
While Blake played in the grandstand, his brother, Thomas, watched the Sharapova-Kirilenko match in the stadium.
"What does that say about men's tennis these days?," James Blake said with a laugh. "They're two pretty cute girls. I don't blame him."