Top-seeded Zvonareva advances to quarterfinal of Pattaya Women’s Open
By APThursday, February 11, 2010
Top-seeded Zvonareva advances in Pattaya Open
PATTAYA, Thailand — Top-seeded Vera Zvonareva of Russia advanced to the Pattaya Open quarterfinals with a 6-3, 6-2 victory Thursday over Alberta Brianti of Italy.
The defending champion wasn’t challenged by the 72nd-ranked Brianti. The 14th-rankled Russian stuck to a baseline game, winning crucial points throughout the match.
The win set up a match against Sybille Bammer, who won the title in 2007. Bammer fought back from a set down to beat teenager Chan Kai-Chen 5-7, 6-4, 6-2.
Many seeded players went out early. The latest was third-seeded Vera Dushevina of Russia, who lost to Ekaterina Bychkova 6-4, 6-1. Bychkova posted her first win over the 40th-ranked Dushevina after losing three previous matches.
She will play Sesil Karatantcheva in the quarterfinal Friday.
“I’ve never played her before in the pro circuit, but we used to compete in the juniors. But we will surely fight hard for the semifinal,” Bychkova said.
