Rezai beats Sharapova to reach Istanbul Cup final

ISTANBUL: Unseeded Aravane Rezai continued her giant-killing feats at the Istanbul Cup, beating top seed Maria Sharapova 6-2 6-4 on Friday to set up a final against Russian Elena Dementieva.   

Frenchwoman Rezai, who beat fourth seed Venus Williams in the second round, suffered a slight leg injury but still easily beat world number two Sharapova.   

"I am very happy about defeating Sharapova. Dementieva is a more experienced player than me...I believe that I will play better tomorrow," Rezai said.   

Earlier, second-seeded Dementieva beat Ukrainian Alona Bondarenko, the fifth seed, 7-6 6-2.   

Dementieva said earlier this month that she had considered retirement after suffering a stress fracture of three ribs while working with a new physical trainer in Moscow.