Second seed Sania Mirza crashed out of the USD 175,000 Japan Open in Tokyo after a straight set loss to Italian Flavia Pennetta in the quarterfinals on Thursday.

The Indian ace went down 4-6, 4-6 to the eighth seeded Italian in her first tournament after recovering from a wrist injury.

Pennetta will now take on fifth seed Virgini Razzano of France in the semifinals.
Sania’s doubles campaign in the WTA Tier III event also came to an end after she and her American partner Christina Fusano gave a walkover to the second seeded Chinese pair of Tiantian Sun and Zi Yan in the quarterfinals.

Venus through
Meanwhile, Wimbledon champion Venus Williams powered into the semifinals with a 7-6, 6-3 win over Australia's Alicia Molik while Lleyton Hewitt booked a spot in the men's quarters by beating Spain's Ivan Navarro, adds Reuters. Williams's superior athleticism gave her the edge in the first-set tiebreak, which she took 7-4, and the women's top seed was never seriously troubled in the second.

Williams will face unseeded Caroline Wozniacki in the last four in Tokyo after the Dane's 6-3, 2-6, 7-6 win over Czech Klara Zakopalova.

In the men's draw, Hewitt eased past Navarro 7-5, 6-3 but the Australian faces a stern test against big-serving Croatian Ivo Karlovic next.

Seventh seed Karlovic scraped past Asia's number one Lee Hyung-taik 7-6, 6-7, 7-6 in an epic struggle lasting two hours, 38 minutes. Spaniard Fernando Verdasco, the eighth seed, battled past former Australian Open champion Thomas Johansson of Sweden 7-6, 5-7, 6-3 to book his place in the quarterfinals.
Ivanovic upset

Ukrainian qualifier Kateryna Bondarenko upset fifth seed Ana Ivanovic 6-2, 1-6, 6-3 on Thursday to reach the quarterfinals of the Stuttgart Grand Prix, adds Reuters.

Holder Nadia Petrova, seeded seven, beat Dutch qualifier Michaella Krajicek 6-1, 6-3.
Petrova meets Jelena Jankovic in the quarterfinals. The Serb defeated Israel’s Shahar Peer 4-6, 6-1, 6-3.