Sharapova rolls into Tokyo semis

Maria Sharapova and Martina Hingis were among the quarterfinal winners Friday at the Pan Pacific Open.

The top-seeded Sharapova shook off a difficult first set and posted a 4-6, 6-0, 6-1 victory over fan favorite Ai Sugiyama of Japan, while the second- seeded Hingis cruised to a 6-0, 6-1 triumph over Australia's Samantha Stosur.

Sharapova, playing this week as the top-ranked woman in the world, will next take on fifth-seeded Ana Ivanovic of Serbia in Saturday's semifinals. Ivanovic beat countrymate and fourth-seeded Jelena Jankovic, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2.


The other semifinal will pit Hingis against third-seeded Russian Elena Dementieva in a rematch of last year's final. Dementieva moved on with an easy 6-1, 6-2 rout of Italian qualifier Roberta Vinci.

Sharapova, who won the Pan Pacific title in 2005, will play Ivanovic for just the second time. The Russian star prevailed in the previous meeting last year in the Linz quarterfinals, 7-6 (7-3), 7-5.

This week's titlist will collect $182,000