Sharapova advances to the quarterfinals

The Russian took time to find her rhythm and faced break points in the first set but Peng could not convert and was broken in the ninth game. The 2004 champion then broke in the first game of the second set and ran out a comfortable winner on Court Two. Fourth seed Victoria Azarenka has given herself a great opportunity to reach her first Grand Slam semi-final after disposing of Russian Nadia Petrova in 64 minutes.

The Belarussian eased through 6-2 6-2 to equal her previous best showing at the All-England Club where she made it to the 2009 quarter-finals. Azarenka, 22 in July, will next face Austrian Tamira Paszek or Russian Ksenia Pervak.