Anna Kournikova struggling with a return in her match against Aranxa Sanchez Vicario in the German Open.

ROME, May 16: Goran Ivanisevic ended Scott Draper's fairytale run at the Italian Open here today, beating the Australian 6-4, 6-4 to reach the semi-finals.

The Croatian sixth seed was a deserving winner, but 75th ranked Draper proved that his stunning second round victory over defending champion Thomas Muster was no fluke.

He made just one bad mistake throughout the whole of the first set; but it cost him the set, when he double-faulted to be broken for 3-2. It was the only break, but it enabled Ivanisevic to serve out to love for 6-4.

The turning point in the match came in the sixth and seventh game. Draper sent over a superb lob to lead 15-0 on the Croatian's serve and Ivanisevic netted a forehand for 15-40 to give Draper two precious break points.

But Ivanisevic's barrelling serves, including an ace to reach deuce, pulled him through and Draper could only balloon his subsequent returns.

In the following game, the Croatian reached 30-40 and a break point, which can't have pleased the gods above who sent down a clap of thunder on a sunny afternoon.

With Ivanisevic stranded, Draper skewed what should have been an easy cross-court winner just out of court to be broken for 4-3, and promptly flung his racket away in disgust.

Draper saved the first match point with a fine backhand shot, but Ivanisevic responded with the one of several superb drop shots before taking the match with an ace.

The Croatian now meets either Moroccan Karim Alami or Spaniard Alex Corrretja for a place in the final.

Kournikova stuns Sanchez

BERLIN: Anna Kournikova, a 15-year-old Russian upstart, won her first match against a top ten player today dominating a battle of the generations at the German Open against Spain's Arantxa Sanchez Vicario.

Kournikova overpowered the No. 6 in the world in the final two sets, posting a 3-6, 6-0, 6-3 win to reach the quarterfinals of the $ 927,000 event.

France's Mary Pierce, seeded No. 12, also reached the quarterfinals. She needed exactly one hour to rout No. 4 Conchita Martinez of Spain, 6-2, 6-0.

Pierce, who also beat the Spaniard to win last week's Italian Open, dumped a soft drop shot off Martinez's second serve to end the match. She has reached three finals in her last five tournaments.

Kournikova next faces 10th-seeded Mary Joe Fernandez of the United States, who beat France's Sandine Testud, 6-2, 6-2. Second-seeded Jana Novotna also advanced, routing Nathalie Tauziat of France, 6-0, 6-2.

In tomorrow's quarterfinals, Novotna plays Sabine Appelmans of Belgium, who upset No 8 Irina Spirlea of Romania, 6-7 (2-7), 6-2, 6-3. South Africa's Amanda Coetzer, who knocked Steffi Graf out of this year's Australian Open, rolled past 14th-seeded Judith Wiesner of Austria, 6-1, 6-1.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.