Top-seeded Carolina Wozniacki loses; Justine Henin, Samantha Stosur win in Stuttgart

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Henin, Stosur win; Wozniacki out in Stuttgart

STUTTGART, Germany — Justine Henin outlasted Belgian teammate Yanina Wickmayer 6-3, 7-5 Thursday to advance to the quarterfinals of the Porsche Grand Prix.

Henin’s path to the final was eased when top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki, still bothered by a sore ankle, lost 6-4, 6-4 to Lucie Safarova.

Dinara Safina, playing her first match since retiring at the Australian Open with a lower-back injury, beat Agnes Szavay 7-6 (5), 3-6, 6-0 to make the last eight.

Henin took a 5-1 lead in the second set and twice served for the match but could not finish it off. Wickmayer tied it 5-5 before Henin won the next two games.

“I got a little tight at the end,” Henin said. “I was controlling the match, but she came back. it wasn’t easy to stay in the match.”

In other matches, Samantha Stosur rallied past Alexandra Dulgheru 3-6, 6-0, 6-2, and Jelena Jankovic eased past Tsvetana Pironkova 6-2, 6-2. Qualifier Anna Lapushchenkova upset sixth-seeded Victoria Azarenka 6-3, 6-3.

Henin, a former longtime No. 1, defeated Wickmayer both times they’ve played since Henin came out of retirement in January. She also beat her en route to the final of the Australian Open.

Last weekend, they were teammates during the Fed Cup win against Estonia. Henin broke the little finger on her non-playing left hand while practicing last week and still wears a brace.

Wozniacki showed signs of being bothered by a right ankle injury, which rolled in the semifinal of the Family Circle Cup in Charleston, S.C., on April 17.

“I didn’t feel like I could move 100 percent,” said the second-ranked Wozniacki, the U.S. Open runner-up last year. “And when you can’t move, it’s difficult to win.”

Safarova, ranked No. 38, made her second quarterfinal of the year and said she noticed Wozniacki was struggling with the injury.

“I tried to make her run and to push her around,” the Czech said. “I always need time to get used to clay, but now I am playing better.”

Stosur extended her winning streak on clay to eight matches. She struggled against Dulgheru in the first set, but quickly regained the momentum.

“She played a decent game, well enough,” Stosur said. “I was frustrated, but I tried to stay calm.”