Tennis: Pe'er through to Eastbourne quarters

Also on Wednesday, Andy Ram and Yoni Erlich advanced to the semifinals of the Nottingham Open.

By ALLON SINAI
Shahar Peer 224.88 ap (photo credit: AP [file])
Shahar Peer 224.88 ap
(photo credit: AP [file])
Shahar Pe'er will face former world No. 1 Amelie Mauresmo in the quarterfinals of the International Women's Open in Eastbourne, England after defeating Aiko Nakamura of Japan 6-3, 6-2 on Wednesday. The Israeli, who is ranked 16th in the world, cruised past Nakamura (85) in 68 minutes to set up a meeting with only top 10 player she's yet to face on tour. Mauresmo, who is currently ranked fourth in the WTA rankings, advanced to the last eight after defeating Italian Mara Santangelo (29) 6-2, 6-3. "Mauresmo is a superb player who won Wimbledon last year," Pe'er said of her quarterfinal opponent, who she will play on Thursday. "She is playing very well and loves the grass court. I watched part of her match against Santangelo and could see she's a very versatile player and comes to the net a lot. "I've never played her before and hope to play well. It's going to be a very interesting match." Pe'er dominated her second round match against Nakamura, breaking her opponent's serve three times and never allowing the Japanese woman to reach a break point. The Israeli won an amazing 36 of 41 points on her serve, improving her career record against Nakamura to 4-0. "I played well right from the start of the match. I felt good and moved well on the court," Pe'er said. "I was composed throughout the match. I served very well and I'm very happy with the way I played and I hope to continue this rich vein of form." Pe'er began the match with a love service game and got the first break of the match in the sixth game of the first set (4-2). The Israeli squandered five set points in the eighth game, but wrapped up the set in the subsequent game by holding serve. Pe'er broke Nakamura in the first game of the second set and took a 3-1 lead with another love service game. The Israeli booked her place in last eight soon after, breaking in the seventh game and serving out the match in the following game. In the doubles tournament, Pe'er and partner Tathiana Garbin lost to Rennae Stubbs and Kveta Peschke 6-1, 6-3 in the first round of the event. Ram-Erlich advance to Nottingham semis Also on Wednesday, Andy Ram and Yoni Erlich advanced to the semifinals of the Nottingham Open, defeating Brazilians Marcelo Melo and Andre Sa 6-1, 6-4. The Israelis, who are looking to win a third straight title in Nottingham, dismantled their opponents in the first two rounds of the event, winning their first two matches in a combined 93 minutes. After splitting the first two games of the match, Ram and Erlich reeled off five straight games to claim the first set. The second set was slightly more tightly contested, but the Israelis were in control and wrapped up the match on their serve in the 10th game. Ram and Erlich will face Joshua Goodall and Ross Hutchins in the last four after the British duo defeated Frenchmen Arnaud Clement and Sebastien Grosjean 2-6, 7-5, 17-15. The seedings for Wimbledon were also announced on Wednesday, with Ram and Erlich seeded seventh in the doubles tournament and Pe'er 16th in the women's event. Four-time defending champion Roger Federer is seeded No. 1, with Justine Henin getting the top spot for the women. Rafael Nadal, last year's runner-up, was seeded No. 2 ahead of Andy Roddick. Defending women's champion Mauresmo was seeded No. 4 in line with her world ranking. Wimbledon, the third Grand Slam tournament of the year, begins Monday. The draw will be held Friday. In determining the seedings, Wimbledon took past performances on grass into account. The seedings at other Grand Slams mirror the rankings. The top 18 women are seeded according to their WTA ranking, with French Open champion Henin No. 1 in her attempt to improve upon her performance as losing Wimbledon finalist in 2001 and 2006. Maria Sharapova, who won the 2004 title at age 17, is seeded No. 2, followed by Jelena Jankovic. AP contributed to this report. On TV: Eastbourne quarterfinals (live at 1:30 p.m. on Eurosport.)