Safina into semifinals of French Open

(BEIJING, June 5) -- Russian No. 13 seed Dinara Safina beat compatriot No. 7 seed Elena Dementieva 4-6, 7-6, 6-0 in the quarterfinals of the 2008 French Open on June 4, battling back from being within one point of losing the match.

Safina, who is known for her strong serve, had a 71 percent winning percentage on her first serves while Dementieva's winning percentage on first serves was only 56.

Safina will meet No. 4 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova, also from Russia, in the semifinals on June 6. Safina has a 3-4 record against Kuznetsova.