Pennetta, Medina Garrigues Headline PalermoPosted on July 17, 2006 PALERMO, Italy -- Clay court specialists have a chance to show their skills on dirt this week at the Internazionali Femminili di Palermo before the American hard court swing begins. This is the first of two back-to-back Tier IV European clay court events, giving players another chance to excel on a slower surface.
Flavia Pennetta and two-time defending champion Anabel Medina Garrigues are the top seeds here at the $145,000 event. The two just faced each other in the Fed Cup World Group semifinal tie between Italy and Spain. Pennetta swept the Spaniard aside in straight sets and also won her second singles rubber to send Italy to its first Fed Cup final. Palermo has been a successful Sony Ericsson WTA Tour stop for both. Pennetta, seeded No.1 this year, made the final here in 2004, losing to Medina Garrigues. Last year, Pennetta made a run to the semifinals before falling to Klara Koukalova. The 24-year-old Milan resident started the year off with an impressive showing at Gold Coast, defeating Martina Hingis en route to the final. She followed up with solid results on clay and grass. In May, she reached the semis at Estoril and last month she pushed Maria Sharapova to three sets in the fourth round of Wimbledon. Pennetta faces Julia Schruff in the first round. No.2 seed Medina Garrigues has lots of positive memories from this event. The Spaniard captured her first Tour singles title here in 2001. Two years later, she made a run to the semis and in 2004 she claimed titles in singles and doubles (partnering with Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario). Last year, she captured her fourth of five Tour singles titles here, defeating Koukalova in the final. Medina Garrigues will meet a qualifier in the first round. Rounding out the seeds are Michaella Krajicek (No.3), Lucie Safarova (No.4), Anna Smashnova (No.5), Koukalova (No.6), Iveta Benesova (No.7) and Lourdes Dominguez Lino (No.8). If the seeds hold up, Pennetta could meet Krajicek in the semifinals, while Medina Garrigues might face Safarova in her half. Romina Oprandi could be a dangerous threat for Pennetta in the top half. The Italian reached the quarterfinals on the clay courts of Rome where she had match point against Svetlana Kuznetsova. In the bottom half, unseeded Eleni Daniilidou could cause some trouble. The Greek reached her first Tour semifinal of the year last month at 's-Hertogenbosch. This is the 16th staging of the Internazionali Femminili Di Palermo. Past champions include Dinara Safina (2003), Mariana Diaz-Oliva (2002), Henrieta Nagyova (2000) and Anastasia Myskina (1999). Irina Spirlea and Mary Pierce won back-to-back titles here in the 1990s. -- WTA |
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