9 Jan 2013

Kuznetsova beats Wozniacki in Sydney

10:02 am on 9 January 2013

Former world number two tennis player Svetlana Kuznetsova defied sweltering heat that earlier prompted ASB Classic winner Agnieszka Radwanska to suggest it was too hot to play to beat seventh seed Caroline Wozniacki in the second round of the Sydney International.

Russia's Kuznetsova, a two-times grand slam champion who was knocked out in the first round in Auckland last week and had to qualify for the main draw in Sydney, beat the former world number one 7-6 1-6 6-2 in a match that lasted almost four hours.

The Australian Bureau of Meteorology reported a temperature high of 41.4 C mid afternoon yesterday at Sydney's Olympic Park and women's top seed Radwanska had said earlier that play should have been abandoned until the temperature dropped.

The world number four, who was given a bye into the second round, played the opening match on centre court and beat Japan's Kimiko Date-Krumm 6-4 6-3 to advance to the quarter-finals.

Former French Open champion Li Na, who followed Radwanska on to court, was good enough to speed through Japan's Ayumi Morita 6-1 6-0 in 52 minutes.