In a result reminiscent of the Australian Open final, Serena Williams beat top-seeded Maria Sharapova 6-1, 6-1 to reach the Sony Ericsson Open quarterfinals on March 27.

"Once she gets up in the set or in the match, she seems to steamroll," Sharapova said.

The match was only the third for Williams since she defeated Sharapova 6-1, 6-2 in Melbourne two months ago. Williams bristled when asked if she expected such an easy rematch.

"Haven't you learned that I expect the best of myself?" she said. "If I'm playing well, then anything can happen. I believe there could be a similar score if I'm playing well."

Ranked No. 1 in 2002-03, Williams has played only six tournaments in the past 18 months and has slipped to 18th. But when she hit a forehand winner on match point, she raised her index finger and shouted "No. 1" to the cheering crowd.

After shaking hands with Sharapova, a jubilant Williams raised her finger again.

"Every time I do that I win, so I'm a little superstitious," she said. "I'm working toward getting to be the best. It's an uphill battle."

Seeking her fourth Key Biscayne title, No. 13-seeded Williams will play No. 8 Nicole Vaidisova in the quarterfinals on Wednesday.

Sharapova, who lost the No. 1 ranking last week to Justine Henin, has yet to win a tournament this year. Her biggest problem is Williams, who has won 24 of the 29 sets they've played since 2006.

"You obviously go out on the practice court, and you work on it," Sharapova said. "It'll take time, but I'm sure I'll get there."

While Sharapova lost her rematch, Andy Roddick won his against David Ferrer. The Spaniard was an upset winner when they played at Key Biscayne a year ago, but this time the third-seeded Roddick won 7-5, 6-3 to reach the quarterfinals.

Sixth-seeded Tommy Robredo of Spain took nearly three hours to finish off Radek Stepanek of the Czech Republic 7-6 (4), 5-7, 7-6 (3), and No. 12 Andy Murray of Britain overcame two match points to beat Paul-Henri Mathieu of France 2-6, 7-5, 6-3.

No. 9 Anna Chakvetadze of Russia became the first women's semifinalist by beating No. 15 Li Na of China 4-6, 7-5, 6-2.

Sharapova beat Venus Williams in the third round on Sunday but lasted only 58 minutes against the younger sister. As was the case in Melbourne, the tall Russian struggled with her serve, once a strength.

Hitting aggressively, she double-faulted eight times and won only four of 16 points on her second serve.

"When you feel that you need to hold serve against someone like her, and someone that's serving so well, I think that puts a little bit of extra pressure on your serve," Sharapova said.

Playing like the Slammin' Serena of old, Williams went for a winner on most of her shots, yet still committed only 15 unforced errors. She won the final five games of the first set and the last six games of the match.

Even after dominating the opening set, she signaled for her father and coach, Richard, to come onto the court for a consultation. His advice: Approach the second set as if it was practice, to make the most of the court time.

"I told her, 'You don't want to get into a hitting battle with Sharapova, because it would be uneven for Sharapova, because Sharapova only has one good side and that's her backhand,"' Richard Williams said. "'You don't want to get into that for the simple reason you would win. So try to hit some balls to her strong side, to her backhand, and that would help you with your match for tomorrow."'

The strategy failed, and Sharapova seemed increasingly frustrated. When she double-faulted on consecutive points, she waved her arms, shook her head and looked at her father in the stands for help. The match became only more lopsided, with Williams winning 22 of the final 28 points.

There was no repeat of the heckling Williams endured from a fan during her match on Monday, including a racist remark. The fan was ejected and banned from the site for the rest of the tournament, and Williams said she had no concerns about security.

"I have an orange belt in taekwondo, just in case," she said with a laugh.

(China Daily via AP March 28, 2007)