World No.20 Dominika Cibulkova defeated former No.1 Amelie Mauresmo in the first round of two successive tournaments.
The 19-year-old Slovak ended Mauresmo’s stay at the recent Toray Pan Pacific Open in the first round already, coming back from a first-set bagel and saving four match points. Today, Cibulkova repeated the upset in the first round of the China Open in Beijing taking the Frenchwoman out 3-6 6-4 6-3. (photo: cibulkova-dominika.com)
Slovakia's Dominika Cibulkova rallied to defeat former world number one Amelie Mauresmo of France 0-6 6-1 7-6 (8) in the first round of the Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo.
Despite taking the first set without losing a game, leading 4-1 in the tiebreaker, and having four match points, Mauresmo was defeated by the Slovakian teenager.
"It's always frustrating to lose a match when you have match points and can't close it out," said the Australian Open and Wimbledon champion Mauresmo. "I let her get back into the match in the second set and it's disappointing to lose like that."
As for the fallen seeded players in the first round, eighth seed Anna Chakvetadze was upset by Kaia Kanepi of Estonia 6-4 3-6 6-3, while Francesca Schiavone stunned seventh seed Daniela Hantuchova 6-1 7-5.
Top seed Jelena Jankovic has a bye into the second round, as well as fellow Serb Ana Ivanovic, who is number two seed. (photo: cibulkova-dominika.com)
Russia’s Dinara Safina, seeded seventh, won her second successive tournament with a 6-2 6-1 victory over Slovakian Dominika Cibulkova at the Rogers Cup in Montreal.
Before, Safina usually lost in the first round of a tournament following the one she won, but now she has managed to claim back-to-back titles.
The Russian was never in trouble in the final against Cibulkova, the 19-year-old who defeated four seeded players on her way to the championship match in Montreal: No.10 Elena Dementieva, No.12 Nadia Petrova, No.2 and soon-to-be top-ranked player in the world, Jelena Jankovic, and No.10 seed Bartoli.
The Rogers Cup title is world No. 8 Dinara Safina’s third of the 2008 season. (source: Reuters, photo via Yahoo)
Seventh seed Dinara Safina and unseeded Dominika Cibulkova are the finalists at the 2008 Rogers Cup in Montreal.
Slovakian Cibulkova came back in her rain-interrupted semifinal against Marion Bartoli to defeat the Frenchwoman 4-6 6-4 6-3. In the other semifinal, Safina beat 11th-seeded Victoria Azarenka 6-0 2-6 6-3.
World No.31 Cibulkova defeated fifth-seeded Elena Dementieva, 12th-seeded Nadia Petrova, second-seeded Jelena Jankovic and now the 10th-seeded Bartoli to reach her second career WTA Tour final. Safina, on the other hand, is enjoying one of the most productive runs of her career. (photos: Getty Images)
World No.2 Jelena Jankovic missed another chance to take the top ranking from fellow Serb Ana Ivanovic losing to Slovakian teenager Dominika Cibulkova in the quarterfinals of the Rogers Cup in Montreal.
En route to defeating second-seeded Jankovic 7-5 6-2 world No.31 Cibulkova won eight straight games. Jankovic at first took a 5-1 lead but couldn’t hold her serve. 
In the second set, Jankovic played below par and her movement was not very good.
Jankovic could have become new world No.1 if she had reached the final at the Rogers Cup, but for the second consecutive week she failed to realize the dream of becoming top-ranked WTA player.
Cibulkova, who earlier defeated Russia's fifth-seeded Elena Dementieva and No.12 Nadia Petrova, will next face either No.10 Marian Bartoli of France and Japanese veteran Ai Sugiyama. (source: cbcsports, photos: Getty Images)
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