Samantha Stosur climbs over Schnyder

Playing with the confidence of a woman who has won 21 of her last 24 matches, Samantha Stosur clawed her way past veteran Patty Schnyder 7-6 (3), 6-2. The eighth seeded 26-year old Aussie showed her mettle against a purposeful clay court expert with a proven record on the red surface.

Stosur was pressed on serve at 0-3, 4-5 and again at 15-30, 5-6. Using her dominating serve, Samantha kept Schnyder deep off the court and was able to comeback in both games. She breezed through the tiebreaker and then hit high gear in the second set.

With the win, Stosur will rise in the rankings to number seven. In the quarters she will be facing hot-playing Venus Williams who owns a 3-0-lifetime record against the Aussie. Stosur knows what to expect and noted that Venus is not as comfortable on clay as she is on the faster tour surfaces.

“I’ve never been able to win against her, but I’ll give it my best shot,” said Stosur. Williams has a tendency to struggle in the first set but with Serena down and out at Madrid, Venus has become the top surviving seed. Both Williams girls know how to rise to the occasion. Stosur and Williams will meet Friday.

In other women’s matches, hard hitting and resurgent Jalena Jankovic smashed Anabel Medina Garrigues, 6-2, 6-0. The 7th seed has elevated her play and her pace of play in recent events.

Surprising Li Na, the 13 seed, outgunned Alona Bondarenko 7-5, 6-2. Bondarenko knocked off second seed Caroline Wozniacki and has been on her game of late.

The Cinderella of the Madrid tourney has been unheralded Aravane Rezai. The Frenchwoman continued her magical quest with a stirring 6-4, 7-6 (8) triumph over German Andrea Petkovic. Rezai surprised Belgian favorite Justine Henin in the first round with a remarkable 4-6, 7-5, 6-0 first round win. She will be paired with Jankovic in the quarters.

Israel’s Shahar Peer continued her solid play earning a berth against Li with a 7-5, 6-2 win over Arantxa Parra Santonia 7-5, 6-2. Peer has had a resurgent season of her own and will not go away easily on the red clay.

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