Ivanovic, who is making her third career appearance at the La Costa Resort and Spa, advances to the semifinals in Carlsbad for the first time. She will face top-seeded Vera Zvonareva of Russia in the featured match of the night session at 7 p.m.

 

Coming into Friday night’s quarterfinal match, Ivanovic had defeated the fourth-seeded Peng in both of their career head-to-head meetings, but they had not faced each other since 2007.

 

Peng scored a service break in the fourth game of the first set and went on to establish a 4-1 lead as Ivanovic struggled with her serve.

 

However, the momentum suddenly shifted as Ivanovic found the timing on her serve and she began to be more aggressive from the baseline. As she elevated the level of her game, Ivanovic broke Peng’s serve twice and won five games in a row to put away the first set.

 

Ivanovic continued to pressure Peng as she broke serve to open the second set. In the fourth game, as she served for a 3-1 lead, Ivanovic fell behind 15-40, but rallied to win the game.

 

Peng held serve to close the gap to 3-2, but Ivanovic would win the next 12 points in winning the last three games at love to win the match and advance to the semifinals.

 

“I'm very excited to be in the semifinal. It's been a while since I've been playing on this level,” says Ivanovic.  

 

For Saturday's full Order of Play, click here.

 

Individual tickets are now on sale for the 2011 Mercury Insurance Open, July 30 to August 7 at the La Costa Resort and Spa.  Reserved grandstand and box seat tickets, which range from $10-$125, are now available online at mercuryinsuranceopen.com or through Ticketmaster at ticketmaster.com.  Tournament ticket packages are also on sale and begin at $70.

 

The Mercury Insurance Open, a Premier 700 Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) event offering $721,000 in prize money, will feature a 56-player singles draw and a 16-team doubles draw in 2011. The women’s professional tennis event returned to the La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad in 2010 after a two-year hiatus.  Russia’s Svetlana Kuznetsova won the singles title last summer when she defeated Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland in the final. The tournament will be televised on the Tennis Channel and ESPN 2.

 

The Mercury Insurance Open is a participating tournament in the Olympus US Open Series. The US Open Series, now in its eighth year, is a six-week summer tennis season that links 10 ATP World Tour and WTA tournaments together. The series leads into the US Open. The Mercury Insurance Open is the second women’s event within the series. For additional information about the Mercury Insurance Open Presented by Tri-City Medical Center, log onto http://www.mercuryinsuranceopen.com/, join us on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/SDTennis) or follow frequent updates on Twitter (http://twitter.com/MercuryInsOpen).  Text “CARLSBAD” to 55333 to join the tournament’s VIP text club and receive up-to-the-minute news, tournament information and player announcements right on your mobile device. Standard text message rates apply.   

              

About Mercury Insurance

Mercury Insurance (MCY) is a multiple-line insurance organization predominantly offering personal automobile and homeowners insurance through a network of independent agents and brokers in California, Florida, New Jersey, Texas, Arizona, New York, Georgia, Oklahoma, Illinois, Michigan, Nevada, Virginia and Pennsylvania. Founded in 1962, Mercury specializes in providing quality insurance at affordable prices – core values that distinguish Mercury in the marketplace. For more information about Mercury Insurance, visit www.mercuryinsurance.com.

 

About Tri-City Medical Center

Tri-City Medical Center is a Joint Commission gold seal accredited, full-service, acute care hospital with three advanced clinical institutes and physicians practicing in 60 specialties. Administered by the Tri-City Healthcare District which includes Oceanside, Vista and most of Carlsbad, Tri-City is celebrating 50 years caring for the community. For more information about Tri-City Medical Center, please visit www.tricitymed.org. 

 

About Octagon Tennis

Octagon’s history and tradition in tennis dates back nearly 40 years. Octagon has played an important role in the globalization of professional tennis. Our long-standing reputation for integrity is the foundation of our leadership position in the industry. Our mission is to serve as the pre-eminent management and marketing agency worldwide for the representation of tennis players. For more information, visit www.octagontennis.com.