01 June,2015 08:29 AM IST | | AFP
The Serbian beauty made the French Open quarter-finals for the first time since her 2008 title run where she'll face Elina Svitolina, the first Ukrainian to make the Last Eight
Ana Ivanovic celebrates her fourth round win over Ekaterina Makarova at Roland Garros yesterday
Paris: Ana Ivanovic made the French Open quarter-finals for the first time since her 2008 title run where she'll face Elina Svitolina, the first Ukrainian to make the Last Eight.
Ana Ivanovic celebrates her fourth round win over Ekaterina Makarova at Roland Garros yesterday. Pic/AFP
Seventh-seeded Serb Ivanovic defeated Russian ninth seed Ekaterina Makarova, a semi-finalist at the Australian Open in January, 7-5, 3-6, 6-1 to book her eighth career Grand Slam quarter-final.
Watched again by German World Cup winning football star Bastian Schweinsteiger, the 27-year-old Ivanovic shrugged off a two and a half hour rain stoppage to secure her third three-set win in four rounds in Paris.
The 20-year-old Svitolina beat fellow former Roland Garros junior champion Alize Cornet on a windy, chilly Court Philippe Chatrier 6-2, 7-6 (11/9).
Cornet loses her cool: Alize Cornet argues with the referee during her match against Elina Svitolina in Paris yesterday. Pic/AFP
Svitolina, seeded 19, is only the second Ukrainian woman to reach a Grand Slam quarter-final after Kateryna Bondarenko made the Last Eight at the 2009 US Open.
It was Svitolina's first win over Cornet in three meetings and the result ended French hopes in the women's singles for another year.
Elina Svitolina
She displayed nerves of steel to achieve victory, failing to serve out the tie in the 10th game of the second set and then allowing five match points to slip through her fingers.
However, she secured victory on her sixth match point when Cornet went long with a backhand, her 42nd unforced error of the tie.
