Israeli was unable to hold on to her serve and lost the second set 6-3.
By ALLON SINAIShahar peer 298.88(photo credit: )
Shahar Pe'er's run at the JPMorgan Chase Open in Los Angeles came to an end Thursday when the Israeli number one lost in straight sets to Elena Dementieva 7-5, 6-3.
Pe'er trailed Dementieva right from the start of the third round match and never quite managed to get the upper hand against the Russian, who is ranked sixth in the world.
Dementieva won the first four games of the match to take an early first set lead. Pe'er (25) scrambled back to tie the match at 5-5 and seemed to be on her way to completing an unlikely comeback. However, the Israeli's serve failed her at crucial points and the Russian won the next two games and the set 7-5.
Pe'er continued to have trouble with her serve in the second set and Dementieva surged to a 5-2 lead. The Israeli broke her opponent to love in the next game, but was unable to hold on to her serve and lost the second set 6-3.
Pe'er finishes the tournament with $6,500 and 25 points, which are expected to move her up one spot in the rankings. The Israeli teen is now on her way to this week's $1,340,000 tournament in Montreal.