No. 2 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova needed less than an hour to book her spot in the quarterfinals of the Dubai Tennis Championships on Wednesday.
The Russian completely outclassed Lucie Safarova in a 6-1, 6-2 victory that laid down her title credentials here at the $1,500,000 event.
Kuznetsova is still looking for her first title this year. She lost in the final of Sydney to Justine Henin, and could well come up against her again in the final here in Dubai.
But first Kuznetsova will have to deal with the dangerous Amelie Mauresmo.
Mauresmo struggles go on
Mauresmo continued her stuttering start to the new season with a below-par performance against Akiko Morigami.
The Frenchwoman has threatened to quit professional tennis if she is unable to rediscover the form that took her to number one in the world.
After dropping the first set, Mauresmo needed more than two hours to edge Morigami 4-6, 6-1, 6-4 and seal a match with Kuznetsova.
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