 Kuznetsova has now lost three of her four meetings with Bondarenko |
Sixth seed Svetlana Kuznetsova followed Venus Williams out of the Madrid Open after a 6-3 6-2 upset at the hands of Ukraine's Alona Bondarenko. Ranked 46th in the world, Bondarenko looked in total control as Kuznetsova struggled with her opponent's serve. Amelie Mauresmo caused another upset when she beat third seed Elena Demetieva 1-6 6-4 6-2. By contrast, seventh seed Victoria Azarenka made routine progress with a 6-4 6-1 win over Shuai Peng of China. Having won their only previous meeting, she ensured a repeat with five breaks of serve.  | 606: DEBATE |
After reaching the semi-finals at the Rome Open last week, she wrapped up victory in an hour and 12 minutes. Elsewhere Russian qualifier Vera Dushevina beat Italy's Francesca Schiavone 6-3 4-6 6-2 in an entertaining tussle. The Magic Box arena can change shape against the surrounding landscape Dushevina's triumph was a welcome boost for the Russian contingent on a day which saw Kuznetsova and Dementieva go out. Kuznetsova had won nine of her 10 matches on clay coming into the Madrid Open, but her bid for a third straight final came unstuck against Bondarenko, the third time she has lost to the Ukrainian on clay.
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