Russia's Svetlana Kuznetsova beat top seed Amelie Mauresmo 7-6, 6-4 in the quarter-finals of the Dubai Open tennis tournament on Friday.

The defeat ended a run of 16 successive victories that earned Mauresmo three titles this year, including the Australian Open.

In another quarter-final, Russian third seed Maria Sharapova gained revenge for her recent defeat by Switzerland's Martina Hingis in Tokyo, winning 6-3, 6-4.

Kuznetsova was to play fourth seeded Justine Henin-Hardenne in the semi-finals later on Friday after the Belgian defeated Francesca Schiavone of Italy 6-4, 7-6.

Source: Xinhua