SAINT PETERSBURG — French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko defeated Russian veteran Vera Zvonareva 7-6 (8/6), 6-3 to reach the St Petersburg Ladies Trophy quarterfinals on Wednesday.

World No. 6 Ostapenko, who is the second seed, triumphed in one hour 38 minutes and will next face either Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic or Romania's Irina-Camelia Begu.

"I have good memories about this event as I won the doubles title here last year," Ostapenko said. "Hopefully, this year I'll manage to perform well in the singles as well." Zvonareva, 33, a former two-time runner-up at the majors, is on the comeback trail after taking two years out from the sport to marry and give birth to a daughter, Evelyn.

Russian qualifier Elena Rybakina, ranked a lowly 450 in the world, survived a match point to see off third seed Caroline Garcia of France 4-6, 7-6 (8/6), 7-6 (7/5) in two hours 26 minutes.

Garcia, ranked seventh in the world, was a set and 5-4 ahead in the second but her nerve failed her as she served for the match. "It was very exciting to oppose such a high-ranked rival," said 18-year-old Rybakina said. "I'm really happy I managed to beat her. I just couldn't imagine I'd reach the last eight."

Wozniacki focused on

winning more titles

Newly-crowned Australian Open champion Caroline Wozniacki said on Wednesday that her first Grand Slam triumph has motivated her to win more titles. The world No. 1 plays her first match since beating Simona Halep in the Melbourne final against Russian teenager Anastasia Potapova at the WTA event in Saint Petersburg on Thursday.

"I have already been the world No. 1 in the past," the 27-year-old Dane, who reclaimed the top ranking from Halep in Australia, said after arriving in Russia. "But now I've finally won a Grand Slam title and returned to the world's top position — it's something really special. It was a combination of many factors, I've come a long way. But the main thing is that I really enjoyed that journey."

Wozniacki is the top seed at the Saint Petersburg Ladies Trophy and faces 16-year-old former junior Wimbledon champion Potapova in the last 16 after receiving a first-round bye. "I really want to perform well at the St Petersburg event," she added. "My main motivation is to win the title. It's much more important for me to focus on my own condition and my personal play.

Barty, Gavrilova to lead

Australia in Fed Cup

Ashleigh Barty and Daria Gavrilova will lead Australia in its Fed Cup match against Ukraine, while Ukraine's top-ranked player Elina Svitolina will not be competing.

Tennis Australia said Thursday that No. 16 Barty and No. 25 Gavrilova will be joined by Casey Dellacqua and Destanee Aiava for the World Group II first-round match in Canberra on Feb. 10-11.

Australia captain Alicia Molik said "this is one of the strongest Fed Cup teams we've had in many years."

Ukraine prevented Australia from reaching the eight-nation World Group in February of last year, winning 3-1 in Kharkiv. The Canberra winner will play off against one of the four losers in the World Group first round for a place in the final eight.

Svitolina, a quarterfinalist at the Australian Open who is ranked No. 3, is not making the trip to Canberra. The Fed Cup said on its website that Marta Kostyuk, a 15-year-old qualifier who made the third round at the Australian Open, will lead Ukraine, joined by Lyudmyla Kichenok, Nadiia Kichenok, Dasha Lopatetskaya and captain Mikhail Filima. — Agencies