Jelena Jankovic booked her semifinal berth at the East West Bank Classic to continue her progress toward the world No.1 ranking

The top-seeded Serb, who can overtake compatriot Ana Ivanovic on top of the WTA world rankings by winning here, passed her toughest test so far this week with a 7-5 6-4 victory over ninth-seeded Russian Nadia Petrova.

"I did play the big points well. At the important times I was really able to hang in there and hit my spots," Jankovic said, adding she wasn't bothered by the torn meniscus in her left knee, any injury that happened at Wimbledon.

"There were no problems whatsoever, no pain," she said.


Jankovic came back from breaks down in both sets to defeat Petrova, who missed an easy forehand volley to lose the first and then tossed her racket angrily into her chair.

The Russian let a 3-1 lead slip in the second and was broken to lose the match when she erred on a forehand approach shot.

"She's really improved over the past year," Petrova said.

"Her serve is better and she's playing faster. Before she was just running on the baseline," said Petrova, who trails 5-2 in their rivalry. "Now she's being more aggressive and stepping in and taking the ball early. That's why she's No. 2."

Jankovic will next face Dinara Safina in the last four after the Russian crushed Victoria Azarenka 6-3 6-1.

Safina, who needed more than two and half hours to beat fellow Russian Alla Kudryavtseva on Thursday, looked sharp on a hot afternoon against Azarenka.

"Sometimes you need those kind of matches where it's good, bad, you are fighting, it puts everything out of you," the fourth-seeded Safina told reporters.

"It was a perfect match," said Safina, who is seeking her first title on U.S. soil. "I have nothing bad to say. My coach said it was the best match I ever played."


(source The Canadian Press, photo/AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

Jelena Jankovic and Dinara Safina move into LA semis