TENNIS in DEPTH.

Andrea Petkovic’s dream tournament got even dreamier on Tuesday evening, as she scored a marathon 26 62 64 victory over Jelena Jankovic to become the first player into the semifinals of the $4.5-million Sony Ericsson Open. The No.21-seeded Petkovic, who had stunned No.1 seed Caroline the day before, looked out of gas early on against No.7 seed Jankovic early on, but she came alive with three games in a row to start the second set and would eventually level it at a set apiece. Jankovic rebounded in the third, building a 4-2 lead, but Petkovic hung tough and won four games in a row to finish it, including a marathon seven-deuce final game. Petkovic ended the match by rifling a backhand crosscourt and out of reach; it was her 30th winner of the match, compared to a more conservative 19 winners for former No.1 Jankovic.

Petkovic, 23 years old, will crack the world’s Top 20 on the next rankings. Next up for Petkovic will be either No.16 seed Maria Sharapova or No.26 seed Alexandra Dulgheru, who played later at night.

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