Wozniacki beats Sharapova at US Open
September 07, 2010 13:47:25 UK
Caroline Wozniacki overcame her first true test of the tournament to underline her status as top seed at the US Open with a fourth-round victory over Maria Sharapova.
Wozniacki had dropped just three games in her first three matches at Flushing Meadows but knew former champion Sharapova would present a far tougher proposition.
However, the 20-year-old Dane produced a typically assured display to win 6-3 6-4 and book a quarter-final clash with the unseeded Dominika Cibulkova, who beat another former champion, Svetlana Kuznetsova, 7-5 7-6.
Betting for the fifth round sees Wozniacki fancied at 1.062 to progress, with Cibulkova available at 8.00.
"It was a really tough match, Maria is a great player so I knew it wasn't going to be easy," said Wozniacki, who reached the US Open final in 2009 where she lost to Kim Clijsters.
"Reaching the final last year definitely helped me a lot, I got a lot of experience from last year and I'm just so happy that I won today and am through to the quarter-finals.
"I definitely think I've improved a lot, not only physically, but also I believe in myself more. I believe I can do it. Also I think I can mix up my game a little bit more than I could last year."
Sharapova was let down by her serve and too many basic mistakes, the 14th seed serving nine double faults and committing 36 unforced errors compared to just 10 from Wozniacki.
The 23-year-old served three double faults in a row to lose her serve early in the first set, and although she clawed that break back, she promptly lost serve again in the next game to allow Wozniacki to serve out for the set.
And another double fault proved crucial in the second set, gifting Wozniacki the break she need to complete an impressive win.
"Even with those unforced errors I still had my chances and I was one for eight on break points," Sharapova said. "Against someone that's playing really well, playing with a lot of confidence, it's really important to take those chances that you have, the very few that come your way.
"I felt like I played a couple of good points and then made an easy error, hit a return long or missed a first serve. I didn't feel like I put much pressure on her."
At 45th in the world, Cibulkova is the lowest ranked player remaining in the draw, but the 21-year-old shrugged off her poor summer form to secure a 7-5 7-6 (7/4) victory over Svetlana Kuznetsova at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Cibulkova had not won back-to-back matches in six tournaments since Wimbledon before arriving in New York, but won her first two matches at Flushing Meadows in three sets before dropping just one game in beating Lourdes Dominguez Lino in the third round.
Caroline Wozniacki is now 2.10 to win the 2010 US Open Women's title.
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