Sharapova beats Wozniacki to reach Madrid Open semis

MADRID (AP) Serena Williams advanced to the quarterfinals of the Madrid Open by beating Carla Suarez Navarro 6-1, 6-3 on Thursday. The top-seeded Williams, who

MADRID (AP) Serena Williams advanced to the quarterfinals of the Madrid Open by beating Carla Suarez Navarro 6-1, 6-3 on Thursday.

The top-seeded Williams, who is a two-time champion in Madrid, broke the Spaniard's serve four times and saved three break points.

Williams is playing in her third tournament since clinching her sixth Australian Open title - and 19th Grand Slam singles title overall.

The top-ranked American will next meet either fourth-seeded Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic or Irina-Camelia Begu of Romania.

Earlier, defending champion Maria Sharapova advanced to the semifinals by defeating Caroline Wozniacki 6-1, 3-6, 6-3.

The third-seeded Russian, who is chasing an 11th WTA title on clay, will next play either Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia or Lucie Safarova of the Czech Republic.