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MELBOURNE: Ana Ivanovic brought Venus Williams’
Australian Open to a juddering halt Wednesday as the impressive
Novak Djokovic ensured three Serbians will contest the semifinals.
Standing between Ivanovic and a
final appearance is Slovakia’s Daniela Hantuchova, who blew Polish
teenager Agnieszka Radwanska off court 6-2, 6-2, as she continues
her comeback after a dive in the rankings.
Djokovic demolished fifth seed
David Ferrer to clinch his fourth consecutive Grand Slam semifinal
slot, again at his dynamic best in wiping out the Spaniard, 6-0,
6-3, 7-5.
He will now face either top seed
Roger Federer or American 12th seed James Blake.
It was a sorry end for Williams,
who was desperate to claim her first title at Melbourne Park to add
to her four Wimbledon and two US Open crowns.
With her sister Serena, the
defending champion, also out, it spelt the end of the tournament for
the Williams’ clan.
Ivanovic, 20, overcame the
American eighth seed in a ferociously-contested 7-6 (7-3), 6-4
thriller, and credited the crowd on center court and her improved
fitness for helping her into the last four for the first time.
“It was an amazing match, we
had lots of long rallies, she’s an amazing competitor and she was
also playing very well today,” the 20-year-old fourth seed said
after posting her first win over Williams in four attempts.
Ivanovic will play ninth seed
Hantuchova, ensuring at least one player in the final on Saturday
will be contesting their first Australian decider.
Djokovic was in sizzling form
against Ferrer, but admitted nerves got the better of him as he
tried to close the match in the third set.
--AFP
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