In Quarter Final

Sania Mirza thrashed
local hope Aiko
Nakamura 6-1, 6-4 to
advance to the quarter
-finals of the Japan
Open Tennis
Championships, in
Tokyo, on Thursday.

The 18-year-old eighth
seed will next take on
top seed Russian Vera
Zvonareva for a place
in the semi-finals. Zvonareva advanced to the last eight beating Israel's Shahar
Peer 6-3, 7-5.

Sania's second round match was postponed due to heavy rain on Wednesday.
In her first round match, on Tuesday, she registered a crushing 6-1, 6-3
victory over Puerto Rico's Vilmarie Castellvi.