Russian Moves One Win From US Open Final
NEW YORK (AP) — Vera Zvonareva let her opponent self destruct, taking advantage of 60 unforced errors to win her U.S. Open quarterfinal 6-3, 7-5 over Kaia Kanepi on Wednesday.
No. 7 Zvonareva, who made the Wimbledon final earlier this year, will play the winner of the day's later quarterfinal between No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki and unseeded Dominika Cibulkova.
The 31st-seeded Kanepi struggled on a windy afternoon in Arthur Ashe Stadium. She hit only 18 winners to go with her 60 unforced errors.
"In these conditions, the most important thing is to find the right balance," Zvonareva said. "It's between keeping the ball in play and going for your shots, and I think I was able to find that balance."
The tone for the match was set early, when the players traded service breaks right away to make it 1-1, and they combined for 12 unforced errors and one winner through the first two games.
"It was tough for both of us," Zvonareva said. "We tried to show our best today and sometimes we had some ridiculous rallies."
Other matches scheduled for Wednesday were men's quarterfinals between No. 17 Gael Monfils and No. 3 Novak Djokovic and a night contest between No. 2 Roger Federer and No. 5 Robin Soderling.
The first women's semifinal was set up Tuesday, when a pair of two-time winners at Flushing Meadows, No. 2 Kim Clijsters and No. 3 Venus Williams, each won.
Copyright 2010 The Associated Press.
