LONDON, 17 June 2004 — Top seed Amelie Mauresmo cruised through her first match at the Eastbourne International yesterday, swatting aside British wildcard Amanda Janes 6-4, 6-2.
The Frenchwoman, a semifinalist at Wimbledon two years ago, was a class above Britain’s No. 2 in every department and cantered to a comfortable victory.
She will next face Magdalena Maleeva in the quarterfinals of the $585,000 grasscourt event after the Bulgarian beat 1994 Wimbledon champion Conchita Martinez of Spain 3-6, 7-5, 6-4. Daniela Hantuchova’s grasscourt revival continued when the Slovak beat Karolina Sprem.
The former world No. 5, now wallowing at No. 54, beat her higher-ranked Croatian opponent 6-3, 2-6, 6-4.
Hantuchova, criticized for her skeletal appearance last year, had lost 14 of the 23 matches she had played this year before coming to Eastbourne and says she is delighted to be on the Devonshire Park grass.
Hantuchova will next meet third seed Ai Sugiyama after the Japanese player struggled past Russia’s Elena Likhovtseva 7-5, 4-6, 6-3.
Fourth-seeded Russian Vera Zvonareva also booked a place in the last eight, ending Nathalie Dechy’s hopes.
The Frenchwoman put up a valiant struggle, before eventually succumbing to Zvonareva’s greater power 6-1, 3-6, 6-3.
Another Russian also advanced smoothly as second seed Svetlana Kuznetsova beat Venezuela’s Maria Vento-Kabchi 6-4, 6-3.
Kuznetsova plays Tina Pisnik next. The Slovenian ousted Italian seventh seed Francesca Schiavone in two tight sets 7-6, 7-5.
