Tennis:Svetlana Kuznetsova ended the French Open title hopes of Serena Williams with victory in an epic three-set quarter-final. The Russian came from a set down to triumph 7-6 (7/3) 5-7 7-5.
In what was a rollercoaster match, Kuznetsova served for the match in the second set but failed to wrap up the win. And after Williams had won six straight games, it was the American who looked poised for victory.
But Kuznetsova managed to steel herself, launching a fightback and then breaking Williams at the end of the deciding set to set up a semi-final meeting with surprise package Samantha Stosur.
The customary slow start from Williams saw her lose both of her opening service games to fall 3-0 down.
Kuznetsova looked sharp and Williams off her game but the 2002 champion quickly raised her level.
Still, the Russian served for the set at 5-4 but Williams played a fine returning game to level.
With Williams now dominating, Kuznetsova had to save a set point at 5-6 and heading into the resultant tie-break Williams looked the favourite.
However, Kuznetsova secured the first mini-break with a superb inside-out forehand winner and from there pushed on to open up a one-set lead.
Kuznetsova was soon 2-0 up in the second but Williams, aided by a heavy fall from the Russian, got the set back on serve in game seven.
A superb backhand winner in the next game left Kuznetsova serving for the match though, but she was broken again to 15.
Her missed chance appeared to be weighing on her mind as Williams broke serve for the third time in a row and closed out the set.
The second seed was threatening to run away with things when she broke immediately at the start of the decider.
Moving the score on to 3-2, she seemed in control but suddenly a poor game on serve opened the door for her opponent, whom she had beaten in this year's Australian Open quarter-finals.
With the advantage of serving first in the final set, Kuznetsova was able to force two match points on the Williams serve at 4-5, but errors on both saw the US ad Australian Open champion stay alive.
Just when it appeared Williams' renowned fighting spirit may be able to secure another remarkable comeback from the brink, Kuznetsova turned up the heat again.
And this time, serving at 5-6, Williams could not get herself out of the hole, a shot drifting wide to leave Kuznetsova the victor after two hours and 47 minutes on court.
Earlier, Stosur brushed aside Sorana Cirstea to reach the last four.
Both women were playing in their first Grand Slam quarter-final, but it was the Australian who progressed with a 6-1 6-3 victory.
Stosur, the 30th seed, broke serve in the second game to take early control and she swept through the first set in just 27 minutes with her Romanian opponent looking a little nervy.
The world number 41 had stunned fifth seed Jelena Jankovic last time out, having never previously made it past the second round of a major, but she was struggling badly in blustery conditions and could only get 33 per cent of her first serves in during the opening set.
Cristea, the only unseeded quarter-finalist, put up a better fight in the second set, with the early games particularly competitive.
She forced her first break points of the match in the second game but was unable to take any of the four created and was made to pay as Stosur broke for a 2-1 lead in the following game.
The Aussie was soon a double break up and although Cirstea did finally manage to take a break-point opportunity to get one back the end was nigh.