Mon Jun 30 11:22:01 2008

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Serena, Venus reach QFs; Jankovic falls at Big W

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Wimbledon, England (Sports Network) - The powerful Williams sisters, Serena and Venus, notched fourth-round victories, while second-seeded Serb Jelena Jankovic was an upset victim Monday at Wimbledon.

Red-hot unseeded Thai Tamarine Tanasugarn tripped up Jankovic in 6-3, 6-2 fashion on Day 7 at the All England Club. The top-three seeds are all gone here, as No. 1 Ana Ivanovic and former top-ranked star Maria Sharapova were upset victims last week.

Tanasugarn is riding a torrid nine-match winning streak, all on grass, including a surprise title in The Netherlands two weeks ago. The 31-year-old Thai will now compete in her first-ever Grand Slam quarterfinal.

Meanwhile, a sixth-seeded Serena stomped fellow American Bethanie Mattek 6-3, 6-3 and a seventh-seeded Venus vaulted past 18-year-old Russian Alisa Kleybanova 6-3, 6-4. Kleybanova was the youngest player still standing here.

The six-time Grand Slam champion Venus is the reigning Wimbledon champ and a four-time titlist here, while the eight-time major champion Serena owns a pair of Wimbledon titles, with both championship match victories coming against Venus in 2002 and 2003. Serena was also the runner-up to Sharapova here in 2004.

Venus' quarterfinal opponent will be the resurgent Tanasugarn.

In other fourth-round action, 18th-seeded Czech Nicole Vaidisova overcame eighth-seeded Russian Anna Chakvetadze 4-6, 7-6 (7-0), 6-3, while Chinese Jie Zheng ousted 15th-seeded Hungarian Agnes Szavay 6-3, 6-4, and 21st-seeded Nadia Petrova handled fellow Russian Alla Kudryavtseva 6-1, 6-4. Zheng stunned Ivanovic in the third round, while Kudryavtseva shocked Sharapova in the second in Week 1.

Vaidisova will face Zheng in the quarters.