Australian Open: Maria Sharapova emphatically came out on top in an all-Russian battle with Elena Dementieva to serve notice she will be a force to be reckoned with at the Australian Open.
Sharapova, who has looked impressive throughout the tournament so far, demolished her 11th-seeded opponent 6-2 6-0 in little over an hour on Vodafone Arena to set up a mouth-watering quarter-final clash with world number one Justin Henin.
The number five seed took the initiative early in the first set with a break and never relinquished her grip to close it out 6-2.
The second proved an even more one-sided affair with Sharapova dominating Dementieva to progress to the last eight in ominous fashion.
The 20-year-old hit 18 winners and also converted six of seven break opportunities despite Dementieva proving solid on her first serve.
Sharapova's most recent encounter with Henin saw the world number one win in three sets in last year's WTA Tour Championship final in Madrid in an epic clash.
Sharapova, who has yet to drop a set this tournament despite a difficult draw, is keen to atone for her previous loss to Henin.
"The one in Madrid was pretty tough. Physically she got me in the end. She was fresher than I was in the end," the Russian said.
"But it was a good match. And I still had many chances. I was very close to winning that match. But this one's a new one. I'm looking forward to it.
"Currently, she's the one to beat. She's on a pretty good winning streak. But every match is a new match. That's why in the morning the guys go out, or girls, and they put the net up. That's why there's always an opponent on the other side. That's why we play the matches."
The Russian fifth seed added that while she appreciated how hard it was to beat Henin, she would not alter her game plan significantly.
"If I have the chances, I don't want to wait to take them," Sharapova continued.
"If I have the opportunity to get a good hit on the ball and come in, I'm hopefully going to take that. If I don't, I'm doing something wrong."#ria Sharapova emphatically came out on top in an all-Russian battle with Elena Dementieva to serve notice she will be a force to be reckoned with at the Australian Open.