Top seed Wozniacki dumped out by Pennetta

Oct 7, 2011, 12:04 GMT

Beijing - Caroline Wozniack lost her grip on a quarter-final with Flavia Pennetta after winning the first set, with the Italian storming back in spectacular style for a 3-6, 6-0, 7-6 (7-2) upset at the China Open on Friday.

Pennetta, loser of five previous meetings with world number one Wozniacki, earned her first victory after two and a quarter hours in a match which included a purple patch from the start of the second set in which she won nine of 12 games.

Wozniacki exits China a year after taking over the top WTA standing at the event - but still seeking a validating first Grand Slam trophy.

'I did my best today, but it just wasn't good enough,' said Wozniacki. 'I had my chances and didn't take them.'

The Danish seed rallied in the third set and took it into a tiebreaker before Pennetta ended the struggle with victory on her first of four match points.

Former number one Ana Ivanovic was felled by a back injury which she has been carrying for almost a fortnight, unable to continue against Poland's 11th seed Agnieszka Radwanska, who won 6-3, 3-2 and now stands two victories away from an Asian title double after a title in Tokyo.

'I've been struggling with my back since actually beginning of last week in Tokyo,' said Ivanovicx, who had keep the problem under wraps for days. 'I've been doing lots of treatments on it, but it hasn't been really getting much better.

'I surprised myself that I got to this stage at all. But because I been playing some really good tennis, it's a very disappointing way to finish.'

Romanian qualifier Monica Niculescu continued her surprise run through the field, with the number 57 defeating former Beijing winner Maria Kirilenko 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.

Niculescu, who has yet to win a career title, improved to 31-19 on the season at an event where she began by knocking out China's French Open champion Li Na in the first round.

Niculescu will face either Germany's ninth seed Andrea Petkovic or Russian number 13 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.

The winner hung tough after losing the opening set, eventually saving nine of the 14 break points she faced to turn the tide and eliminate Kirilenko, the number 24 who won the first of her five career titles here in 2005.

On the men's side, top seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga beat Spanish veteran Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-3, 6-4 while third seed Tomas Berdych hammered Spain's Fernando Verdasco 6-1, 6-0 in just 65 minutes.

Tenth-ranked Berdych is a longtime member of the elite as he plays for his 93rd week in the Top 10. Verdasco's trajectory has been downwards for months after he departed the Top 10 in April and now stands 23rd.

Berdych won his eighth match from a dozen meetings with a longtime rival and has now claimed their last six hardcourt matches. He lost serve in the opening game, then won the next 12.

While his 45-18 record this season is solid, it still does not include a 2011 title, leaving the Czech and Frenchman Gael Monfils as the only pair from the Top 10 without a trophy. Berdych has lost just 13 games in three wins so far this week.

'The hard court is much more suitable for my game style,' said Berdych. 'I can play more aggressive, give him much more pressure, and force him into mistakes.'

He will play his seventh semi-final of the year against either French top seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga or Spain's Juan Carlos Ferrero.

Croatian veteran Ivan Ljubicic beat Russian Mikhail Youzhny 7-6 (7-4), 6-7 (4-7), 6-2 and compatriot Marin Cilic put out South African Kevin Anderson 7-6 (7-4), 4-6, 6-1.

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