Russian 12th seed Elena Dementieva advanced to the fourth round of the US Open after surviving the first set against seed No.24 Daniela Hantuchova and then moving through the second set much more easily for a 7-5 6-2 win. Dementieva converted all six of her break points, three in each set, while Hantuchova was serving for the first set and permitted Dementieva to recover.
Hantuchova hasn’t really defeated Dementieva since 2005 and they have played six times since then (I said “really” because Hantuchova did score one victory over Dementieva, but it was when Dementieva retired, this year in Dubai).
Dementieva’s opponent in the fourth round will be fifth seed Samantha Stosur who defeated 37th-ranked Sara Errani 6-2 6-3. Stosur had a pretty solid victory over Errani and the Italian has now fallen to 0-15 against Top 10 players.
Dementieva won all four meetings with Stosur on hardcourts and is 4-1 lifetime against the Australian. Dementieva was finalist at the US Open in 2004, and played the semifinals three times, while Stosur has never before been further than the second round of the US Open. (photo: © Neal Trousdale)
