Sharapova fights it through 4th round

Sharapova won a tough battle over Italian Flavia Pennetta to enter semi-finals with a 7-6 3-6 6-3 win.

Fighting spirit saw Russia's Maria Sharapova through to the Wimbledon quarter-finals on July 3, 2006, even though she dropped her first set of the tournament in a 7-6 3-6 6-3 win over Italian Flavia Pennetta.

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The 2004 champion was given a real test by 16th seed Pennetta who more than matched her for long periods of a tight fourth round encounter on court two.

"I just didn't feel like I was playing my best tennis. In the end, it all came down to how much I fought," said Sharapova.

"It wasn't really about how good or bad I played, or how good she played, because she played extremely well. I just fought deep."

The Siberian, who used bags of ice to cool herself in the changeovers, took the first set tiebreak 7-5 but the fourth seed was immediately 3-0 down in the second set and Pennetta soon levelled the match.

The Italian netted a forehand to lose serve for 3-1 in the decider and Sharapova, shrieking with every bludgeoned groundstroke, whacked a backhand winner on her third match point to seal victory.

She tackles fellow Russian Elena Dementieva in the last eight.

"Definitely I'll have to step it up for my next match," said Sharapova, who lost in the semi-finals last year.

"You can't come out every single day and play your best tennis. At the end of the day, I came out with a win. Hopefully I'll improve tomorrow."