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Elena Dementieva - Source: Photosport -
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Russia's Elena Dementieva battled her way through brutal
conditions to beat unseeded Spaniard Carla Suarez Navarro 6-2 6-2
in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open on Wednesday.
Both players struggled in the scorching heat as the temperature
approached 40 degrees Celsius but it was the more experienced
Dementieva who coped best.
The world number four won the first four games to runaway with the
opening set, then raced to a 5-1 lead in the second to wrap up
victory in 93 minutes.
"It was very tough to play because of the weather conditions,"
Dementieva said.
"Maybe it looked easy but I think for such a score like 6-2 6-2, we
played one and a half hours, which is a pretty long match.
"She is very strong physically, a very fit player. Playing for the
first time, I didn't know what to expect from her."
Despite the lopsided scoreline, Dementieva did not have it all her
own way against the Spanish baseliner, who enhanced her reputation
as one of the rising stars of women's tennis by reaching her second
grand slam quarter-final in only four tournaments.
Break Points
Dementieva served 10 double-faults and had to fight off 10 break
points on her own serve, twice as many as Suarez Navarro offered
up.
"I had a lot of break points but I couldn't take them," the
Spaniard said.
Dementieva has never won a grand slam singles title but has been in
great form over the last 12 months, winning the gold medal at the
Beijing Olympics and making the semi-finals at Wimbledon and the US
Open.
The 27-year-old spent the off-season training in Florida to get
herself in the best possible shape for Australia although she said
there was nothing she could do to fully prepare for the extreme
temperatures.
"You can work so hard trying to get ready for the weather
conditions but when you have to face 40 or 41 (degrees), there is
no way you can get used to it," she said.
"The best way is to play as quick as possible and just get away
from the court. There is no way to adjust with the heat
here."
"The plan was just to step into the court, just try to be
aggressive and make winners."
Dementieva's hard work has already paid off this season, she won
two warm-up tournaments in Auckland and Sydney and Wednesday's win
over Suarez Navarro extended her unbeaten run this year to 15
matches.
She was also the third Russian woman through to the semi-finals in
Melbourne this year, joining Dinara Safina and Vera Zvonareva. Her
semi-final opponent will be either Serena Williams or Svetlana
Kuznetsova
