Sony Ericsson WTA Tour : 2006


Dementieva Advances on Rainy Day 4

The heavens opened again on a cold Saturday at the Pacific Life Open, allowing just five women's singles matches to be completed


The inclement weather didn't seem to agree with the seeded players, with just two the five who finished their encounters progressing to the third round.

Occasional doubles partners Elena Dementieva and Flavia Pennetta, seeded here in singles at No.4 and No.6 respectively, were the two seeds to win, although they posted victories in vastly different ways. While Pennetta cruised against Croatian qualifiers Ivana Lisjak, 61 62, Dementieva, who wore long shorts to keep warm, was taken to three sets by another qualifier, Belarussian Anastasiya Yakimova, 64 36 63.

Pennetta will take on the winner of the rain-delayed match between American No.32 seed Jill Craybas and Finnish up-and-comer Emma Laine. Likewise, Dementieva doesn't yet know the identity of her next opponent, although it will be either American qualifier Bethanie Mattek or No.28 seed Sania Mirza of India.

American teen Vania King, a wildcard entry here at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, scored an impressive 63 63 win over No.16-seeded Czech Klara Koukalova, ranked No.27 in the world. It was King's second career win over a Top 50-ranked player; the first, coincidentally, was over No.41-ranked Koukalova in the 2005 US Open first round.

King's next opponent will be China's Li Na, who crushed Czech No.24 seed Iveta Benesova on Saturday, 60 61.

Japan's Aiko Nakamura was the only other woman to post a second-round win on Saturday, scoring a minor upset over Italian No.25 seed Mara Santangelo, 63 75. Last month, Santangelo collected her first-ever Sony Ericsson WTA Tour singles title in Bangalore, India, and reached a career-high ranking of No.37 on February 20, having started 2006 at No.88.



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