Ivanovic trumps Sharapova

Rome - Ana Ivanovic has handed Maria Sharapova her first loss of the spring clay season as she beat the Russian eighth seed 6-1, 6-4 on Thursday to reach the quarter-finals of the ATP-WTA Rome Masters.

Sharapova had won back-to-back titles in Stuttgart and Madrid, compiling a dozen straight victories.

Ivanovic, the 2008 Roland Garros winner and world number one, had won just two of ten previous meetings with the four-time grand slam champion, the last seven years ago at a Roland Garros semi-final.

The Serb next plays Spain's Carla Suarez Navarro.

Results on Thursday from the fourth day of the WTA/ATP Rome Masters tournament: -

Women:

Third round
Carla Surez Navarro (ESP x13) bt Simona Halep (ROM x4) walkover
Sara Errani (ITA x10) bt Petra Cetkovsk (CZE) 6-4, 7-6 (7/3)
Li Na (CHN x2) bt Samantha Stosur (AUS) 6-3, 6-1
Ana Ivanovic (SRB x11) bt Maria Sharapova (RUS x8) 6-1, 6-4

Men:

Third round
Tommy Haas (GER x15) bt Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI x3) 5-7, 6-2, 6-3
Milos Raonic (CAN x8) bt Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA x11) 7-6 (7/5), 6-4
Jeremy Chardy (FRA) bt Ivan Dodig (CRO) 6-3, 6-2
Andy Murray (GBR x7) bt Jurgen Melzer (AUT) 7-6 (7/1), 6-4