Published: 16 August, 2009, 12:23
Edited: 16 August, 2009, 12:23
There won't be an all-Russian final in Cincinatti, as world number one Dinara Safina will take on Serb Elena Jankovic for the title.
It didn't take long for Safina to take the first set in her semifinal clash with Flavia Penetta, and the second just added to the torture for the 27-year-old Italian, who quickly went 4-0 down, and struggled to return the Russian's daunting serve.
A long backhand gave the match to Safina, with the 6-2, 6-0 scoreline giving an illustration of the lack of fight left in her adversary.
The victory allowed Safina to reach her eighth final in 14 tournaments this year, ending Pennetta's winning streak at 15. However, by reaching the semis, Pennetta became the first Italian woman to move into the top ten.
Safina will face more of a challenge in the final, after fifth seed Jelena Jankovic emerged victorious from a tightly-contested match against fourth seed Elena Dementieva.
The Serb was able to edge ahead and claim the first set via a 7-6 tie break.
In the second, Dementieva, who had chalked up eight double faults in the opener, got her serve under control and dominated proceedings on her way to leveling the match with an impressive 6-0 scoreline.
However, her error-strewn ways returned in the third, as she was broken twice on double faults. The decider ended with a tiebreaker, in which Dementieva got up 6-2, blew four match points, then double-faulted to put it back in Jankovic's hands.