Posted at 6:30 a.m., Thursday, January 3, 2008
Tennis: Venus Williams wins in Hong Kong tourney
By MIN LEE
Associated Press Writer
Peng, a powerful double-handed hitter on both sides, outhit Williams occasionally but never posed a serious threat to the more consistent American.
Williams will next play Russia's Elena Dementieva, who upset top seed Ana Ivanovic of Serbia, 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 in Thursday's other quarterfinal. The other semifinal pits Russians Maria Sharapova and Anna Chakvetadze.
Williams, a six-time Grand Slam winner, believes she and her sister Serena can dominate women's tennis again if they avoid injuries, noting they won two of the four Grand Slams last year. The Williams sisters have fallen out of the world's top five, with Serena ranked seventh and Venus ranked eighth.
"If we can just stay healthy and keep practicing and get the work done off the court before we come to the tournaments, it makes a world of a difference," Williams said.
The Williams sisters have 14 Grand Slams between them.
Slovakia's Daniela Hantuchova, ranked ninth in the world, pulled out of the doubles competition in Hong Kong with abdominal pains. It wasn't immediately clear whether it would affect her plans for the Australian Open, scheduled for Jan. 14-27.
