Schiavone and Govortsova to meet in Kremlin Cup final

8th seed Francesca Schiavone, who just doesn't stop surprising us, will play Olga Govortsova in tomorrow's Kremlin Cup final. Schiavone defeated Alona Bondarenko, 6-4, 6-0 in the semifinals today. Govortsova defeated Alisa Kleybanova 6-2, 6-1.

Meanwhile, in Luxembourg, 6th seed Sabine Lisicki came back from being down 2-4 in the third set against Shahar Peer, and won her semifinal match 6-3, 4-6, 7-6. In the final, Lisicki will play Timea Bacsinzky, who upset 5th seed Yanina Wickmayer, 3-6, 6-2, 7-5.

Blogging may slow down for a while

There isn't a lot of blogging going on right now, anyway, but there may be less for a while as I depart for a vacation. But I'll be checking in and doing my best to keep up with the Sony Ericsson Championships. The new calendar places them right during my vacation; I usually watch them upon my return. However, I think I'll get to watch some of the action while I'm gone.

Semifinals set in Moscow and Luxembourg

The big news today is that 2nd seed Jelena Jankovic was defeated 6-4, 6-3 in the Kremlin Cup quarterfinals by Alisa Kleybanova. The only seed remaining is Francesca Schiavone, who defeated Maria Kirilenko 6-3, 6-2. Also defeated in straight sets were Tsvetana Pironkova, who lost to Alona Bondarenko, and Vera Dushevina, who lost to Olga Govortsova.

In Luxembourg, Timea Bacsinzky defeated Katarina Srebotnik, Shahar Peer upset 4th seed Daniela Hantuchova, and Patty Schnyder--having taken out both Petra Kvitova and Kim Clijsters--lost to 6th seed Sabine Lisicki. Also winning, and thereby putting herself in another semifinal, was Yanina Wickmayer, who defeated Kirsten Flipkens 7-6, 4-6, 6-1.

In doubles, the top seeds, Anna-Lena Groenefeld and Patty Schnyder, were upset by the team of Vladimira Uhlirova and Renata Voracova.

Friday cat blogging--tote bag edition

Jankovic becomes number 8 for Doha

Jelena Jankovic defeated Lucie Safarova in the second round of the Kremlin Cup today. In an earlier match, Vera Zvonareva was defeated 6-0, 6-2, by Tsvetana Pironkova, who--this time--followed a big win (over Pavlyuchenkova) with an even bigger one. The upshot of all this is that Jankovic is now the eighth contender in the 2009 Sony Ericsson Championships.

By the way, we're just out of the second round in Moscow, and only two seeds remain--Jankovic (2) and Schiavone (8).

In Luxembourg today, wild card and 2nd seed Kim Clijsters was upset by Patty Schnyder, 6-4, 3-6, 7-6, in the second round, and 8th seed Carla Suarez Navarro was upset in the second round by Shahar Peer.

Between them, Daniela Hantuchova and Lucie Hradecka, hit 18 aces. Hantuchova won the match, 7-5, 3-6, 6-2.

Radwanska out of contention for Doha

Agnieszka Radwanska, until today, had a chance to be the eighth woman to compete at the Sony Ericsson Championships in Doha, but her fate was sealed today when she lost in straight sets to Maria Kirilenko in the first round of the Kremlin Cup. Kirilenko is now 2-1 against the world number 10.

Flavia Pennetta retired in the first round in Moscow today because of a left knee injury. She was a contender to be an alternate in Doha, but today's events removed that chance. Rather, Radwanska will be an alternate, and now it is down to either Vera Zvonareva or Jelena Jankovic to take the final spot in the competition.

There were a couple of upsets today in Moscow, also. Qualifier Evgeniya Rodina defeated 6th seed Elena Vesnina in the first round, and Alona Bondarenko defeated 5th seed Nadia Petrova in the second round.

Meanwhile, in Luxembourg, qualifier Kirsten Flipkens upset 3rd seed Anabel Medina Garrigues.

Retirements in Moscow

Sara Errani and Sorana Cirstea both retired during their first round matches in Moscow today--Errani with a right shoulder injury, and Cirstea with a right foot injury. Akeksandra Wozniak and Monica Niculescu were the beneficiaries of the retirements.

Tsvetana Pironkova, who is known for sometimes knocking off higher-ranked players, did so today when she defeated Anastasia Pavlyuchenko 6-3, 2-6, 6-4. Top seeds Vera Zvonareva and Jelena Jankovic both advanced to the second round, also. Zvonareva defeated Ioana Raluca Olaru, and Jankovic defeated Yaroslava Shvedova, the woman who took her out of the U.S. Open.

Jankovic won 6-4, 5-7, 6-1, and the sixth game of the last set featured eight deuces; Shvedova saved six match points on her own serve, and had a break point against Jankovic, but could not convert it. Jankovic hit six aces and double-faulted seven times.