Maria Sharapova booked her place in the quarter-finals of the WTA Bank of the West Classic with a 6-3 6-3 win over Olga Govortsova.
Former world number one to meet fellow Russian Dementieva next
Maria Sharapova booked her place in the quarter-finals of the WTA Bank of the West Classic with a straightforward 6-3 6-3 win over Olga Govortsova.
The former world number one, who is seeded fifth in the event, overcame the shock of losing her opening service game to ease through in 79 minutes.
The Russian converted four of her 12 break-point opportunities to set up a showdown with compatriot Elena Dementieva in the last eight in Stanford.
"I stayed aggressive and made sure to have an extra something on my ball," said Sharapova afterwards.
"I thought I had the advantage when I hit a good solid serve and then tried to take the ball and do something with it."
Bartoli progresses
Meanwhile, defending champion Marion Bartoli, who beat Venus Williams in last year's final in Stanford, progressed thanks to a 6-3 6-4 win over former world number one Ana Ivanovic.
The Frenchwoman will next face the eighth-seeded Victoria Azarenka, who knocked out Melanie Oudin 6-3 6-1 to reach her sixth quarter-final of the year.
"I think I played very well," Azarenka said. "It was a little tough at the beginning with a couple of service breaks but I felt strong the whole match."
Shahar Peer became the first big-name casualty, though, the sixth seed suffering a 6-4 6-3 loss at the hands of Maria Kirilenko.
