Sharapova reaches Pan Pacific quarterfinals

World No. 2 Maria Sharapova staved off a strong challenge from Lucie Safarova to beat her Czech opponent in a straight sets 6-2, 7-6 (7-5) victory on Wednesday to reach the quarterfinals of the Pan Pacific Open.

The career Gram Slam titleholder dominated the first set, but the world 17th-ranked player dug deep in her energy reserves to force a tiebreaker in the second on a balmy day on center court at Ariake Tennis Forest Park.

Sharapova, making her seventh appearance here with titles in 2005 and 2009, rolled out to a 3-0 lead in the second set, but Safarova bounced back and broke the Russian former world No. 1 at triple breakpoint in the fifth game.

The pair played a see-saw battle, tying it twice at 4-4 and 5-5, and Safarova broke Sharapova again in the 11th game before her serve deserted her in the next game to force the extras.

"After winning the first set, and going up 3-0 in the second, I think I became a little frustrated. I thought I had the momentum," said Sharapova, adding that she struggled against the lefty's serve.

"The spin comes from a different direction (than right-handers), and it takes a little longer to get used to. When her serve is on, it can become quite tricky," she said.

Sharapova took a 3-0 lead in the tiebreak, but Safarova rallied to tie it at 4-4. The Russian pulled ahead and served out the match with an ace on the final point to finish in 1 hour, 43 minutes. Sharapova will next face Australian No. 8 seed Samantha Stosur, a 6-4, 7-5 winner over Slovakian Dominika Cibulkova in another third-round match.

Asked her prospects on facing Stosur in the quarterfinals on Thursday, Sharapova said, "I have a good record against her. But she is certainly a solid player; uses a lot of spin. It will be important to keep improving and play at a higher level against her."

Stosur, ranked ninth in the world and making her sixth appearance here, improved to 3-0 for her career against the world 13th-ranked Cibulkova, who played for the fourth time in Tokyo. Stosur broke her opponent three times and saved four out of five break points.

Italy's Sara Errani, the No. 6 seed, took advantage of France's Marion Bartoli's errant service game to rally in a 3-6, 6-2, 6-2 win. Ninth-seed Bartoli shot herself down with 12 double faults.

"It was a different environment than I'm used to and a faster surface, so it was harder to play my game. I didn't start well, but from the second set after the first three games, she was more tired and I played a little better," said Errani.

Russian Nadia Petrova, the 17th seed, outlasted Croat Petra Martic 7-6 (7-2), 6-7 (1-7), 6-4 to reach the final eight.

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Sharapova rallies back, triumphs over Watson

World No. 2 Maria Sharapova held off British qualifier Heather Watson in a three-set thriller to reach the third round of the Pan Pacific Open on Tuesday.

Sharapova, the second seed who had a bye into the second round, came back from a set down to beat the 78th-ranked Watson 6-7 (7-9), 6-3, 6-4.

Sharapova, winner of the Tokyo meet in 2005 and 2009, struggled early when she lost the first-set tiebreaker before rebounding on center court at Ariake Tennis Forest Park against the 20-year-old Watson, who was making her debut here.

The career Grand Slam titleholder beat Watson in three sets in the first round at the 2011 U.S. Open in their only other meeting.

Watson, who has three quarterfinal finishes but no WTA singles titles, showed great resolve to break Sharapova twice in the third set, but the Russian overpowered her diminutive opponent with nine aces to just one for the Brit.

Sharapova won a challenge with the chair umpire on an ace that just stayed inbounds of the centerline to gain match-point at 40-15, and Watson thumped her racket on the court three times after hitting a forehand long to end the match after 3 hours, 9 minutes.

Earlier, wildcard Ayumi Morita put up a valiant fight against No. 5 seed Angelique Kerber but lost 6-3, 6-4, failing to advance out of the second round for the second year in a row and leaving no Japanese players left in the singles' draw.

Germany's Kerber, currently ranked sixth in the world, broke the 79th-ranked Morita at 3-1 en route to claiming the first set and twice more in the second. Morita fought off match-point at 40-15 in the eighth game and broke her opponent for the first time.

"The whole match was very close. I just tried to be focused on my own game," said Kerber. "She is very hard to play against, especially here in Tokyo. This is a big win for me."

Morita, who had held a 2-1 career record against Kerber, was unable to rally on her opponent's serve in the 10th game and the match ended after 1 hour, 26 minutes when she hit her backhand volley wide.

"I was determined not to give up until the end. Whether I'm facing match-point or not, I am always trying for points," said Morita. "Today I played close to an ideal match. I just needed a little more push. I was charging the net and trying to create as many chances on my own as possible."

In other key matches, Croatia's Petra Martic upset fourth-seed Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic 6-4, 6-4 while seventh-seeded Li Na of China defeated Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia 7-5, 4-6, 6-2.

"It was a difficult match today. I practiced very well. I was feeling healthy and things were going well, but it didn't show in the match," said Kvitova.

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Sharapova stumbles through at French Open; Li crashes out

Ave Maria: Maria Sharapova hits a shot during her 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-2 win over Klara Zakopalova in the fourth round of the French Open on Monday. AP

PARIS — On days like these, when so little goes right and so much goes awry, Maria Sharapova tosses away the strategies and scouting reports her coach devises and, well, does whatever it takes to win.

Locked in a three-set, 3-hour struggle at a wet and windy French Open on Monday, Sharapova's right, racket-swinging wrist was aching — and that, she insisted, was the least of her problems.

There was the tumble to her backside that Sharapova could laugh about later. The exasperating line calls, and what the second-seeded Russian considered an obstinate chair umpire. The 12 double-faults, plus 41 other errors of Sharapova's own doing. The nine breaks she allowed, including three while serving for the match. The unseeded foe who wouldn't go away.

"It was," Sharapova summed up, "a good test for me."

Certainly the first she's faced at Roland Garros this year. After dropping a total of five games in three matches that averaged less than an hour each, Sharapova moved into the quarterfinals at the only Grand Slam tournament she hasn't won by dispensing with tactics and swinging away until she finally pulled out a 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-2 victory over 44th-ranked Klara Zakopalova of the Czech Republic.

"I'm useless with game plans. That's probably the one thing (coach Thomas Hogstedt) just gets so frustrated with me about," Sharapova said. "I go out there and I do my own thing, and then he's like, after the match, 'Really? What's the point? I mean, what's the point of having me?' But I apologized when I hired him, in advance, so he's OK."

Hogstedt's take?

"It's good we have a day off tomorrow so we can step it up again," he said. "This was clearly a match where she was not playing as well as she should."

Sharapova and Hogstedt both said her wrist, which she repeatedly flexed during the match and fiddled with at her news conference afterward, shouldn't be an issue. Something else that might not be? The opposition. It seems that nearly every day a potential roadblock is swept out of the draw, from Serena Williams, to Francesca Schiavone, to Li Na.

Indeed, Sharapova now has one thing in common with every woman left: None has won the French Open.

Her next opponent, No. 23 Kaia Kanepi of Estonia, hasn't been beyond the quarterfinals at any Grand Slam tournament but got to that round for the fourth time by defeating unseeded Arantxa Rus of the Netherlands 6-1, 4-6, 6-0.

Asked whether she thinks she can beat three-time major champion Sharapova, Kanepi replied: "If I play well, of course. Why not?"

Defending champion Li's surprising exit came against Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan, an eyeglasses-wearing doubles specialist ranked 142nd in singles who needed to go through qualifying rounds to enter the main draw.

"I have to find the reason why I lost the match," said Li, China's only Grand Slam singles champion. "I will find out. But not today."

Rafael Nadal's pursuit of a record seventh French Open title rolled on with another rout, this one a 6-2, 6-0, 6-0 victory over his pal, Juan Monaco of Argentina, who's not exactly a slouch — he was seeded 13th and has won five clay-court titles.

But Nadal is 49-1 for his career at the French Open and might be better than ever. He's lost a total of 19 games so far, the fewest through four completed matches at Roland Garros since Guillermo Vilas' 16 games in 1982.

"I feel really comfortable, really at ease," Nadal said. "When the tournament is over, I'll tell you if this was my best Roland Garros or not. For the time being, I'm still playing. So far, so good. But we'll see. Things could change."

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Sharapova retains Italian Open title

Roman holiday: Maria Sharapova holds the Italian Open trophy after beating Li Na in Sunday's final in Rome. AP

ROME — Maria Sharapova successfully defended her Italian Open title Sunday, beating Li Na 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5) in a wild match in which play was twice interrupted by rain and the red clay turned to mud.

"The match was a joke," Li said. "It's tough to play in such heavy rain and then you go and rest for two hours and then play again in heavy rain. . . . But I still have positive things to take away. She was just stronger and tougher."

The rain proved even more formidable for a men's final that never happened. Defending champion Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal will have to wait until Monday to settle their championship.

Li appeared on course for victory when she surged to a 6-4, 4-0 lead, but 24 unforced errors from the French Open champion allowed Sharapova to take the next six games and the set.

Sharapova then seemed certain to win when it began to drizzle. The second-seeded Russian took a 4-1 lead in the third, but Li fought back to win four straight games to lead 5-4. Both held serve the rest of the way, forcing a tiebreaker.

After waiting out the rain for two hours in the locker room, the third set was over in five minutes. Sharapova completed the victory in 2 hours, 52 minutes.

"It was a really difficult match what with so many swings and having to wait an hour or two hours and then a tiebreaker in the final," Sharapova said. "It almost feels difficult to have a loser and a winner as it all came down to one game, but I am happy.

"It's great to beat someone at the level she played last year and knowing how well she plays on clay and how she defends and get herself back in good positions."

Sharapova had the first break of the match. Li, however, broke straight back and did so again in the 11th game to take the first set.

Li was in control as she broke to love and raced to a 4-0 lead in the second set, taking 15 of 17 points as Sharapova struggled with the ferocity of her strokes. But the pressure seemed to get to the eighth-seeded Chinese, and Sharapova won the next eight games.

Li clawed her way back in when she got to 40-0 in the ninth game of the second set. But Sharapova broke following a couple of unforced errors and two double-faults and went on to serve for the set.

Li managed to even the final set as the rain lashed down. The match was delayed briefly at 5-5 and the players waited courtside for it to ease up before play resumed.

Sharapova almost handed the match to Li when she smashed the ball into the net, giving her opponent a championship point. But Sharapova persevered with a powerful forehand to the corner.

With rain pouring, the players were asked if they wanted to continue. Both said they did, but were eventually forced off court before the tiebreaker with the torrential rain leaving the court a mess.

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Top-ranked Azarenka cruises into showdown against No. 2 Sharapova

Reach for it: Maria Sharapova attempts to play a shot against Petra Kvitova on Saturday in Stuttgart, Germany. Sharpova won 6-4, 7-6 (7-3). AP

STUTTGART, Germany — Top-ranked Victoria Azarenka was set to face No. 2 Maria Sharapova in the final of the Porsche Grand Prix on Sunday.

Azarenka cruised past Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland 6-1, 6-3 in the first semifinal Saturday, and Sharapova outlasted No. 3 Petra Kvitova, the Wimbledon champion, 6-4, 7-6 (7-3).

Azarenka is seeking a tour-high fifth tournament title of the year.

She dominated the match against the fourth-ranked Radwanska, whose four losses of the year have come against Azarenka.

On match point, Azarenka fired a forehand winner to advance to the final. She is 29-1 for the year.

Sharapova is off to a promising start to her clay-court season. The Russian broke serve in the fifth game and did not face a break point of her own in the first set.

That changed in the second.

Kvitova held 11 break points in the set, but the Czech could not convert any.

She did convert her 12th — after saving a match point — to even the score at 6-6 and sent the second set into the tiebreaker. Sharapova made fewer mistakes and now seeks her first title of the year.

Azarenka leads Sharapova 5-3 in career meetings.

BARCELONA, Spain — Rafael Nadal crushed Fernando Verdasco for the 13th time in his career on Saturday to set up a fourth Barcelona Open final with longtime rival David Ferrer.

The Sunday showdown will be a repeat of the 2008, 2009 and 2011 finals which were all won by Nadal.

French Open champion Nadal, fresh off winning an unprecedented eighth straight title at Monte Carlo last weekend, overwhelmed Verdasco 6-0, 6-4 in just 85 minutes with four breaks of serve.

Third seed Ferrer had a tougher afternoon, requiring just over two hours in defeating huge-serving Canadian Milos Raonic 7-6 (7-2), 7-6 (7-5).

"I played a great first set, and stayed focused for the entire match even if the second set was a lot more difficult," said Nadal.

"It wasn't that easy at all, Fernando is a tough player who has won the title here. This was a very satisfying win for me, I'm glad to be in another final and have the chance to win another time at this great event.

"David and I have always had tough matches and I'm expecting another one on Sunday."

Nadal has dominated the Barcelona event, winning six titles in seven previous appearances. On the one occasion he didn't play — he missed 2010 with knee problems — Verdasco took the honors.

Nadal's victory was his 38th victorious semifinal in a row on clay, with his last loss coming against Carlos Moya in August of 2003.

Raonic had turned in a breakthrough week on the clay of the Real Club de Tenis, winning all of his matches in straight sets.

He defeated Spaniard Nicolas Almagro and upset second-seeded, world No. 4 Andy Murray in the quarter-finals.

The 21-year-old, ranked 25th, threatened early in the opening set against Ferrer but could not convert on four break chances.

Raonic saved six set points before Ferrer finally clinched it in the tiebreaker from the Canadian's netted forehand.

In the second set, the pair stayed level-pegging, with Raonic saving the lone break points of the set in the 11th game.

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Sharapova into Stuttgart semis

Marathon battle: Maria Sharapova plays a shot from Australia's Samantha Stosur in their quarterfinal match at the Porsche Grand Prix on Friday. Sharapova won 6-7 (5-7). 7-6 (7-5), 7-5. AP

STUTTGART, Germany — Top-ranked Victoria Azarenka needed nearly 3 hours to overcome big-serving Mona Barthel 6-4, 6-7 (3-7), 7-5 on Friday for a place in the Porsche Grand Prix semifinals that feature the top four players in the world rankings.

Azarenka will face fourth-ranked Agnieszka Radwanska, a 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 winner over Li Na.

Second seed Maria Sharapova rallied to outlast Sam Stosur of Australia 6-7 (5-7), 7-6 (7-5), 7-5 in a match that went a minute over 3 hours. Sharapova will face third-seeded Petra Kvitova, the Wimbledon champion who beat Angelique Kerber 6-4, 6-4 in the last quarterfinal.

Stosur, the U.S. Open champion, played nearly flawless tennis and a double fault by the Russian gave her a match point at 5-3 in the second set. But Sharapova saved it with a forehand winner and held serve.

The first break point Stosur faced in the match came in the next game and she netted a forehand to allow Sharapova to level the score.

Sharapova then started raising her game to win the tiebreaker and take control.

She broke serve for a 6-5 lead and closed out the match in the next game despite a double-fault.

Barthel fired 13 aces but her serve deserted her in the final game. The German failed to win a point and double-faulted on match point, one of her 16 double faults.

Barthel came back from a break down and saved an earlier match point in the 10th game of the third set. The match on indoor clay lasted 2 hours, 48 minutes.

"She is very tough to play," Azarenka said. "She's much more confident now and her serve is right up there with the best. We were playing over two hours and she was still serving aces."

Azarenka, the Australian Open champion, is looking for a tour-high fifth title of the year.

BARCELONA, Spain — Rafael Nadal dispatched Janko Tipsarevic 6-2, 6-2 Friday to advance to the Barcelona Open semifinals, while Milos Raonic served 14 aces and upset second-seeded Andy Murray 6-4, 7-6 (7-3).

The top-seeded Nadal moved his Serbian opponent around the red-clay court with his powerful forehand.

The second-ranked Spaniard broke Tipsarevic in his first service game to set the tone for his 32nd consecutive win at the tournament. Tipsarevic earned three break points in the last game of the first set, but Nadal recovered to win five straight points.

Nadal was broken for the first time to make it 2-2 in the second set, giving the fifth-seeded Tipsarevic a glimmer of hope. But Nadal won the next four games, capping a dominating performance with two straight aces to close out the match in 1 hour, 23 minutes.

"In the first set I was playing really well, and then at the start of the second he attacked more while I left my shots short," Nadal said. "But I am satisfied with the match. I am in the semifinals again. Tomorrow I will have to play at my highest level."

Nadal, a six-time champion at the tournament, will face fellow Spaniard Fernando Verdasco after Kei Nishikori was forced to retire with an injury when trailing 4-2 in the first set.

Raonic, who trains at the Real Club de Tenis, used his strong forehand to beat Murray.

The 11th-seeded Canadian broke the fourth-ranked Murray to lead 4-3 and then set up a set point with an ace before smacking a forehand down the line to take the first set.

Murray managed only four points on Raonic's serve in the first set and continued to struggle on the return in the second. But Murray broke Raonic when the Canadian served for the match before losing in the tiebreaker.

"It's very, very difficult and a big plus in confidence for me," Raonic said. "Clay's not his best surface, but he consistently does well on it. Last year he reached the semifinals at the French Open, Monte Carlo and Rome, so he can play really well on it. For me, it was a big win, regardless of the surface."

Raonic is one win away from his fourth final of the season. He will next face David Ferrer, who saved three match points while rallying to beat Feliciano Lopez 6-7 (4-7), 7-6 (9-7), 6-3.

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Sharapova to miss Brisbane event

BRISBANE, Australia — Maria Sharapova has withdrawn from the Brisbane International because of her continuing recovery from a left ankle injury.

Sharapova was hurt at the Pan Pacific Championships in Tokyo in September.

Sharapova told Brisbane tournament officials in a statement released Saturday that "unfortunately my ankle is not 100 percent and I won't be able to make it this year."

It would have been her first appearance at the Brisbane event, which begins Jan. 1.

She said the injury, which also forced her to withdraw from the China Open and later the WTA Championships in Istanbul after two losses, should not affect her chances of competing at the Australian Open, which she won in 2008 and which begins Jan. 16 in Melbourne.

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