Djokovic, Ivanovic Reach Australian Open Semifinals

Jan. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Ana Ivanovic, Daniela Hantuchova and Novak Djokovic reached the Australian Open semifinals for the first time, as Venus Williams followed her sister out of the tennis tournament today.

No. 4 Ivanovic ousted Williams 7-6 (7-3), 6-4 to advance to her third semifinal in four Grand Slams. U.S. Open finalist Djokovic will appear in his fourth straight after routing David Ferrer and will next meet defending champion Roger Federer or James Blake, who play tonight.

Ivanovic, 20, underlined her emergence as a force in the women's game by recording her first victory over Williams in five attempts. The French Open runner-up will need to beat Hantuchova tomorrow to make it to her second major final.

``I was looking forward to some revenge,'' Ivanovic told reporters at Melbourne Park. ``I'm really happy with my performance and the way I came back in that second set.''

Her victory followed yesterday's win by Jelena Jankovic over defending champion Serena Williams, meaning three players from Serbia -- a nation of 10 million people -- will appear in the semifinals, as they did at the 2007 French Open.

It also produced an all-East European women's semifinal lineup, with Jankovic taking on Russia's Maria Sharapova.

Venus Williams, 27, lost her service three straight times in the opening set and broke back each time. The eighth-seeded American took until game eight to win a point on her second serve, then made a series of errors in the tiebreak, volleying into the net to lose a set to Ivanovic for the first time.

`Definitely Improved'

Williams, seeking a seventh Grand Slam title, raced into a 3-0 lead in the next set only to be broken for a fourth and fifth time. Ivanovic, who lost to Williams at last year's Wimbledon and French Open, saved two break points before closing out the victory in 1 hour, 46 minutes.

``She's definitely improved on everything in her game,'' said Williams, who lost her service 17 times at the tournament. ``That's really what it takes at this level.''

The 20-year-old Djokovic, a U.S. Open finalist in September, continued his run of not dropping a set as he overpowered fifth- seeded Ferrer 6-0, 6-3, 7-5.

The Serb, aiming for a first Grand Slam title, won the first seven games and saved two break points at 2-2 before breaking Ferrer in the sixth game, prompting the Spaniard to hurl his racket.

Baseline Battler

Djokovic, who won their 2007 U.S. Open semifinal, took Ferrer on at his own game, dominating from the baseline before struggling to close out the victory. He won on his fifth match point in 2 hours, 14 minutes.

``I even surprised myself the way I played in the first two sets,'' Djokovic said in a courtside interview. ``I'm happy I'm performing my best tennis at the major events. This is just the start.''

The 24-year-old Hantuchova, a former world No. 5, eased past 29th-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska 6-2, 6-2, continuing her revival after a five-year wait for a fourth major quarterfinal.

The Slovak, who has yet to meet a player ranked in the top 25, broke in the fourth game and won six straight to take the first set and build a 4-0 lead in the second. She lost her service twice before completing the win in 1 hour, 27 minutes.

Hantuchova burst on the scene with three straight last- eight appearances from Wimbledon in 2002 before dropping outside the top 50. The ninth seed defeated Ivanovic in their most recent of three meetings and lost the others.

`Opportunities'

``I guess everybody has different times when they mature,'' Hantuchova told reporters. ``I had to go through all those times and opportunities that I missed to be able to get here.''

The 18-year-old Radwanska, from Poland, capitulated after producing her best career performance -- including a victory over second-seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova -- in advancing to a Grand Slam quarterfinal at only her third major.

Blake must end a run of seven defeats to Federer to advance to a meeting with Djokovic and a first Grand Slam semifinal. The American has won just one of 19 sets against Federer, a tiebreak when two sets down at the 2006 U.S. Open.

``I try to learn something from all of the defeats,'' said Blake, 28. ``So far I've learned he's pretty good.''

Defending champion Federer has looked below his best in the past two rounds, needing five sets to beat an unseeded player and then struggling in the first two sets against Tomas Berdych in the fourth round.

``I know Blake's game sort of suits my game,'' said Federer, seeking a third straight Australian Open title and 13th Grand Slam. ``I've had some great matches against him where I always play my very best.''

Second-seeded Rafael Nadal of Spain will face 38th-ranked Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in tomorrow's semifinal, when Russian fifth seed Maria Sharapova will take on No. 3 Jankovic and Hantuchova will play Ivanovic. The other men's semifinal is scheduled for Jan. 24.