Commonwealth Bank Tennis Classic (Bali)

Top 4 Final Four Thwarted as Paszek Ousts Pennetta

Nadia Petrova and Patty Schnyder set up a semifinal clash with seemingly straightforward wins Friday, but Daniela Hantuchova had to battle for more than two and a half hours to secure her place in the final four. The top-seeded Slovak's opponent will be Austrian teen Tamira Paszek, who upset the form guide by defeating No.3 seed Flavia Pennetta.

Although the 64 63 scoreline in fourth seed Petrova's win over No.5 seed Francesca Schiavone suggested a routine day at the office, the Russian wasn't entirely pleased with her performance against the feisty Italian, who actually went into the match with a 4-1 lead in the pair's rivalry.
"I didn't go on court with the right attitude and the first five games I was fighting with myself and making it easy for her," Petrova said. "After 4-1 down in the first set I decided to fight and be more professional with myself and won that first set, which was crucial. After that I played quite well and was happy to win because she's a very dangerous player."
Next up for Petrova is a player with whom she shares an even longer history: No.2 seed Schnyder, who holds a 6-5 edge in their head-to-head. The Swiss veteran, who celebrates her 30th birthday in December, had too much guile today for Marta Domachowska, who was appearing in her first quarterfinal of the year.
"I'm really happy with my game at the moment. I played very solid today, hardly making any mistakes," said Schnyder after her 62 62 dispatch of the 22-year-old Pole. "She doesn't like my game when I mix up the spins and I think she got frustrated and that made her make some errors. I'm looking forward to the semifinals. I've played Nadia quite a few times already and am ready for a tough battle."
Having survived a marathon encounter with Chinese Taipei's Chan Yung-Jan, Hantuchova was also glad for the chance to keep looking ahead.
The world No.11 led 5-2 in the first set before Chan mounted a comeback and served for it at 6-5, only to be taken to a tie-break. Although Hantuchova closed out the opener, proceedings remained tight, and although Chan wasn't able to keep hold of a break secured midway through the second set, she was able to break again at 5-4 on her first set point. But Hantuchova seized back the initiative by breaking the 19-year-old in the first set of the decider, and didn't look back on her way to a 76(4) 46 62 result.
"I'm thrilled to win this match tonight," Hantuchova said. "It was very long, with many momentum shifts. The surface is very fast here with the heat and humidity and almost plays like grass, so things can change in a hurry. She played very well and was hitting the ball really flat and low.
"It means a lot to me to do well here after my injury and I really want to keep it going. It's my first semi since Australia."
Hantuchova's next opponent, Paszek, will also be contesting her first semifinal since January, when she reached the penultimate stage at Auckland. In the intervening months the 17-year-old's ranking has dropped by some 40 places, but after dropping the first set to Pennetta she set a blistering pace to register a 46 60 62 win.
"I'm not changing my routine this week, it's a lucky one," Paszek said. "I keep playing last match of the day, and hitting for 15 minutes afterwards helps me a lot. I was happy to play well tonight against Flavia, who has been playing very well lately. After a slow start, I found my rhythm. I have nothing to lose against Daniela, I know how she plays, and I am just gonna go for it."
Saturday's schedule sees Petrova and Schnyder take to the court first, followed by Hantuchova and Paszek. The two singles semis will be followed by a doubles semifinal between Jill Craybas and Natalie Grandin against Domachowska and Petrova, who beat No.2 seeds Vania King and Alla Kudryavtseva 76(5) 63 in the quarters on Friday. The other doubles semi has already been played, with No.3 seeds Hsieh Su-Wei and Peng Shuai proving too strong for Olga Savchuk and Ipek Senoglu, 63 63.