Safina wins,Kuznetsova brushes aside Jankovic

The Russian then trailed 3-1 in the second set before turning her game around,winning 11 consecutive games to clinch the set and then the decider. Safina next plays either Venus Williams or Agnieszka Radwanska.

In the other side of the draw,Kuznetsova ousted Jankovic 6-1 7-6 3. The eighth-ranked Russian,who won the Porsche GP last week for her first title in almost two years,dictated play with her powerful groundstrokes and hit 27 winners more than twice as many as her opponent.

I played what she liked,and,of course,she has more power than me, said Jankovic,who has dropped to fourth in the rankings after ending last season as No. 1.

Kuznetsova was a runner-up in Rome two years ago,when she lost to Jankovic in straight sets. She will next play the sixth-seeded Victoria Azarenka of Belarus,who defeated Kaia Kanepi of Estonia 7-6 5,-3 in a sloppy match that saw 13 breaks of serve and numerous unforced errors.