Victoria Azarenka swept the final nine games on Monday and advanced to the quarterfinals at the French Open by beating 2010 champion Francesca Schiavone 6-3, 6-0.
There were four consecutive service breaks before Azarenka took the lead for good, holding to make it 4-3. The superior pace and depth of her shots began to wear on the unseeded Schiavone, and Azarenka took charge by winning 11 of 12 points during a stretch late in the first set.
The Belarusian broke serve seven times and committed only 14 unforced errors.
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Azarenka next plays Maria Kirilenko, who reached her first French Open quarterfinal by ending the surprising run of American Bethanie Mattek-Sands with a 7-5, 6-4 victory.
She trailed 4-1 at the start against Mattek-Sands, who stunned 2011 French Open champion Li Na in the second round.
But Mattek-Sands’ lead began slipping away, and while ahead 5-4, she asked for medical attention. From there, Kirilenko won four games in a row.