Samantha Stosur will take on Jelena Jankovic for a place in the semi-finals of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships

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Samantha Stosur was involved in a tough matchup with Lucie Safarova in round two of the WTA Dubai Open, but she pulled through with a 6-1, 6-7(5), 6-1 victory. The second set lasted for 69 minutes, but besides that the contest was a breeze for the Aussie, who perhaps deserved the win in straight sets. Next up for Stosur will be a quarter-final clash against Jelena Jankovic.

“Lucie has got a big game and can be a very dangerous player. When she puts it all together it's hard to play against,” commented the US Open champion. “I thought I was serving really well tonight. That second set I lost it, but I don't think I did that much wrong. I had a few opportunities to try and break late in the second set and wasn't able to take them, but then finally did early in the third.”

Jankovic made a slow start to her second round meeting with Flavia Pennetta, but bounced back to clinch a 6-4, 6-2 success. “I was down a break in the beginning, then I managed to lift up my game and I started playing a lot more aggressively,” revealed the Serb. “Especially I think I served a lot better than her today. I was holding my service games and I was waiting for the opportunities to break her. Overall I think I played pretty well. Flavia is a great player and is playing well, and it wasn't easy to beat her.”

Prior to this matchup, Jankovic holds a 4-2 head to head record against Stosur. Coincidentally, the pairing last met in this very round of the WTA Dubai Open last season. Jankovic produced an inspired comeback in that match to win 6-3, 5-7, 7-6(4), after going 4-1 down in the third set.

“We haven't played each other since the quarterfinals here last year,” said Stosur. “It's a good chance for me to try and bounce back from that loss.”