World number two Maria Sharapova advanced to the semi-finals of the French Open for the first time by brushing aside fellow 20-year-old Russian Anna Chakvetadze 6-3 6-4 on Tuesday.
Second seed Sharapova, who feels more at ease on faster surfaces and had never gone beyond the quarter-finals on four previous visits to Roland Garros, needed just 78 minutes to beat her compatriot, seeded ninth. Chakvetadze, who lost to Sharapova in the quarter-finals of this year's Australian Open, bowed out by firing a backhand return wide on the first match point.
Former Wimbledon champion Sharapova, who is hampered by a sore shoulder and said here she felt like a "cow on ice" on clay, will face Serbia's Ana Ivanovic for a place in the final.
"I was moving really well today and I tried to defend her balls", said Sharapova, who has been fighting a string of injuries and has not won a title this year. "That's mainly what the key of the match was. I was just retrieving well. I'm happy to be in the semi-final for the first time here in Paris."
Sharapova broke her opponent in the sixth game and stayed on top until taking the set with a forehand winner after 39 minutes. The pair traded breaks early in the second set, which was tight until Sharapova managed the telling break in the ninth game to serve for the match.
The former world number one said she was expecting a challenge against Ivanovic, who advanced by knocking out last year's runner-up Svetlana Kuznetsova. "She actually plays pretty similar to Chakvetadze", Sharapova said of her next opponent. "She hits the ball pretty flat and big and she's had some good success on clay this season. So it will definitely be a very tough match".