Jelena Jankovic, who won the Internazionali BNL d’Italia title in 2007 and 2008, defeated Gisela Dulko 6-3 7-6(6) in the second round.
Jankovic could have advanced much more quickly, but she let the Argentinean world No.39 come back in the second set. Jankovic even put herself in a position of saving four set points in the tenth game before leveling at 5-5. Not only did the defending champion waste the early lead, but at 5-5 rain delay set in and the match was prolonged even more. When play resumed, Jankovic and Dulko held their serves, and the third seed finished the match in the tiebreak. Jankovic was on a good way to waste her chances again, though, as she converted only her fifth match point.
The fourth-ranked Serb will next take on Ukrainian Kateryna Bondarenko, who knocked out last year’s runner-up Alize Cornet 6-4 6-1. (photo: Ralf Reinecke)
