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Dementieva continues her run with tough win over Bartoli

Elena Dementieva had the endurance to overcome Marion Bartoli © Getty Images

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Elena Dementieva and Nadia Petrova both won the battle of the seeds to reach the semi-finals of the Pilot Pen Tennis tournament in New Haven.

Dementieva, the fourth seed, faced an immense test of endurance as she battled past sixth seed Marion Bartoli in a three-hour epic.

Things were looking good for the Russian after she took the opening set 6-3. But the first set score line fails to highlight her struggles against the belligerent Bartoli.

Out of a possible 12 break points, Dementieva only took four, with her opponent only converting two out of the seven she created for herself.

Bartoli rallied in the second, using her serve far more effectively, and she didn't need a second invitation to pounce on Dementieva's wavering service.

But Dementieva, who has two titles to her name this year, was not to be denied and the 28-year-old returned far better to earn two breaks of serve to edge into the last four.

Petrova, on the other hand, had a far more straightforward victory over Sam Stosur. Stosur was far from her best though, conceding 12 break point chances in the first set alone. Luckily for her, Petrova only made use of five of them, otherwise she could have faced a bagel.

The second set went much the same way, with Petrova grabbing two breaks to cruise through in style 6-2 6-1.

Caroline Wozniacki is through to a last-four meeting with Dementieva after her opponent, Flavia Pennetta, withdrew from their quarter-final clash with a foot injury.

After capturing the US Open Series title, which is based on results on the North American circuit heading into the final grand slam of the year at New York, Wozniacki could be set for a $1 million dollar bonus should she win at Flushing Meadows.

Dinara Safina's run was brought to an abrupt end by Maria Kirilenko. Safina, who was given a wildcard for the tournament, was not at her best, but in truth neither was Kirilenko. But Kirilenko took her chances and she beat her Russian compatriot 6-3 6-3.

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