Kanepi to face former world no. 1 in Brisbane quarterfinals
Tennis player Kaia Kanepi (WTA 52) continued her winning ways on Wednesday at the Brisbane International by beating American Madison Brengle (WTA 91) in straight sets, 6-3, 7-6, advancing to quarterfinals.
Estonia's top tennis player had knocked out German Andrea Petkovic, ranked 13th in the world, in the first round.
The first set was easy enough for Kanepi, pulling away at 3-2. The first set ended 6-3. The Estonian trailed 2-5 in the second set, but won back the initiative to level at 5-5 and then 6-6 before powering through the tiebreaker 7-3.
Kanepi will face former world no. 1, Ana Ivanović, who is currently ranked 7th by the Women's Tennis Association. The quarterfinal match will be played on the main court on Thursday.
Kanepi won her first WTA Tour title in Palermo in 2010, becoming the first Estonian female player to win a WTA title. She has also reached five Grand Slam quarterfinals in three different Grand Slams, becoming the first Estonian to do so and was the first Estonian to be ranked in the world's top 20. She won her second WTA title at the Brisbane International and her third at the Portugal Open, both in 2012. Her most recent title came at the Brussels Open in 2013.
Editor: J.M. Laats, S. Tambur