Sharapova Has Speed Factor

CARLSBAD —  Maria Sharapova, a spokeswoman for a new fast-paced game similar to badminton, put on a demonstration of speed tennis in the third round of the $1.3-million Acura Classic, and she wasn’t alone.

Four of eight singles matches Thursday at La Costa Resort and Spa were completed in 61 minutes or less. Sharapova was the fastest to finish off an opponent, speeding into today’s quarterfinals with a 6-0, 6-1 rout of Gisela Dulko of Argentina that took all of 44 minutes.

“I just made it quick,” said Sharapova, who three months ago began playing and promoting Speedminton, a hybrid of badminton and tennis that is played with a modified shuttlecock and without a net.

“I played very solid and I think I took it right from the start. I was able to make some good returns and put some pressure on her from the start.”

Lindsay Davenport, who won her second-round match over Iveta Benesova in just over an hour Tuesday night, followed with a rapid-fire 6-1, 6-2 victory over 32-year-old Conchita Martinez that lasted 46 minutes.

No. 12-seeded Vera Zvonareva also made quick work of seventh-seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova, upsetting her, 6-2, 6-3, in 60 minutes, and third-seeded Anastasia Myskina cruised past Chanda Rubin, 6-1, 6-2, in 61 minutes.

“Some days, the matchups just don’t work out the way they’re supposed to,” said Davenport, who continued a summer-long surge that has included victories in 11 matches in a row and 15 of her last 16. “You always try and win the matches as quickly as possible, but whatever happens, happens.”

Not only was there a lot of rushing, there were also plenty of Russians, with seven playing in third-round singles matches and quarterfinal doubles matches. Four Russians will play in three of today’s four quarterfinal singles matches, and Zvonareva and Elena Likhovtseva advanced in doubles.

Zvonareva, who gave Serena Williams all she could handle in a quarterfinal match at the JPMorgan Chase Open last week, will play the tournament’s top-seeded player in singles again at 1 p.m.

The top-seeded Williams defeated Elena Bovina, 6-4, 6-2, in a night match. She won the first set after taking an early 3-1 lead, but struggled to close it out.

After breaking Bovina for 5-2, Williams could have served out the set in the eighth game, but she failed on three game point chances. Bovina won the next game on serve to pull within 5-4 before Williams served out the next game.

In the second set, Williams took a 4-2 lead and broke Bovina on the second of two chances for 5-2. The next game, she had a triple-match point, converting the third one when Bovina was wide on a cross-court forehand.

Myskina, the French Open champion who is ranked No. 5 in the world, and Sharapova, the Wimbledon champion who is ranked No. 8, will face off in a featured match at 7 p.m.

Myskina prevailed in their only two previous meetings, winning in three sets in the third round of the Australian Open in January and in two sets in the fourth round at Indian Wells in March.

“I think she’s improved a lot since then. She’s more confident right now,” Myskina said. “I’m No. 1 in Russia, and I want to be in No. 1 in the world, you know, so that’s the motivation for me to win the match.”

Fifth-seeded Elena Dementieva, who handled Likhovtseva, 6-2, 7-6 (2), despite characteristic struggles with a weak slice serve, likes Myskina’s chances.

“Maria likes to hit the ball, and she knows how to hit, but Myskina, she’s playing everything back,” she said. “She likes when someone plays aggressive against her because she can use this power, and she is really good to play against someone from Russia because she wants to be the best one. That’s the goal for Anastasia.”

The latest victory by Davenport came against an opponent who had won eight of 14 previous meetings.

“I don’t think she played near her level, but it was a good win,” Davenport said. “I’m glad I got it over with quickly. It’s probably one of the easier times I’ve ever had playing her.”

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Featured Matches

Today’s matches at the Acura Classic:

STADIUM COURT, Starting at 10 a.m.

* Elena Dementieva vs. Amy Frazier

* Ai Sugiyama vs. Lindsay Davenport

* Serena Williams vs. Vera Zvonareva

STADIUM COURT, Starting at 7 p.m.

* Anastasia Myskina vs. Maria Sharapova