Singles Has Venus In, Serena Out; Top-Seeded Black And Huber Upset In Doubles
STANFORD, Calif. (www.BankOfTheWestClassic.com) – Venus Williams made quick work of Maria Sharapova in the tournament’s most highly-anticipated matchup of the week, knocking off the three-time Grand Slam singles champion 6-2, 6-2 on Friday night in the quarterfinals of the 2009 Bank of the West Classic.
Playing in front of the largest crowd in Bank of the West Classic history, Williams notched her third consecutive straight-set victory and defeated Sharapova in one hour and 20 minutes. The tournament’s No. 2 seed, Williams raced out to 4-1 leads in both sets before securing the match. A record crowd of 3,828 witnessed the night session, besting the previous high of 3,823 for the 2005 final.
Williams will face the tournament’s No. 3 seed Elena Dementieva in the first of two semifinals on Saturday afternoon. Dementieva was a 6-2, 6-4 winner over Daniela Hantuchova earlier in the day on Friday. The series between the two players has been lop-sided, with Dementieva holding a 10-3 advantage and winning the last four matches since a loss back in 2005.
Saturday’s other singles semifinal will feature a pair of upset winners from Friday. Samantha Stosur knocked off her second seeded player of the tournament when she stunned No. 1 seed Serena Williams 6-2, 3-6, 6-2. Stosur, a 6-4, 6-3 winner over No. 6 seed Dominika Cibulkova in the opening round, surprised everyone with a 6-2 win in the first set before Williams evened the match with a 6-3 victory in the second frame. Tied at 2-2 in the third set, Stosur ripped off four consecutive games in what she later called the biggest win of her career.
Stosur will battle eighth-seeded Marion Bartoli, who escaped with a 3-6, 7-6 (3), 6-3 upset over fourth-seeded Jelena Jankovic. Even at one set apiece, Bartoli trailed early 2-1 in the third set before winning five of the last six games to secure the match.
Fittingly enough, the evening concluded with another upset in doubles as the team of Yung-Jan Chan and Monica Niculescu upended the tournament’s No. 1 tandem of Cara Black and Liezel Huber 7-5, 6-3.
Tickets for the 2009 Bank of the West Classic can be purchased by calling the box office at 866-WTA-TIXS (866-982-8497) or by logging on to www.BankoftheWestClassic.com.
The Bank of the West Classic, a premier Sony Ericsson WTA Tour event, is now in its 39th year and features a 32-player singles draw as well as a 16-team doubles draw. The event is owned and operated by IMG and serves as the opening women's event of the Olympus US Open Series.
The list of past champions of the event reads like a Who's Who of women's tennis including Lindsay Davenport, Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Andrea Jaeger, Monica Seles, Martina Hingis, Venus Williams and Kim Clijsters.
ABOUT THE BANK OF THE WEST CLASSIC: The Bank of the West Classic is the longest-running women-only professional tennis tournament in the world and is the first stop of the Olympus US Open Series. A Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Premier event, the Bank of the West Classic features a 32-player singles draw and a 16-team doubles draw with total prize money of $700,000. Held on Stanford University’s campus at the Taube Family Tennis Stadium since 1997, former champions include: Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Andrea Jaeger, Monica Seles, Martina Hingis, Lindsay Davenport and Venus Williams. The Bank of the West Classic is owned and operated by IMG.
ABOUT BANK OF THE WEST: With more than $66 billion in assets, San Francisco-based Bank of the West is one of the nation’s 25 largest banks. Founded in 1874, Bank of the West is a full-service financial institution with nearly 4 million accounts in more than 700 branch and commercial offices across 19 Western and Midwestern states.
