Serena Williams beats Flavia Pennetta in straight sets at Cincinnati

Defending champion Serena Williams advanced to the quarterfinals in the women's Cincinnati WTA event after defeating 13th seed Flavia Pennetta in straight sets.

The world number one, who beat Italy's Pennetta 6-2, 6-2, will now face eighth seed Jelena Jankovic, who beat Sloane Stephens 7-6 (7/4), 6-4.

Also through was world number two and second seed Simona Halep, who defeated Czech Lucie Safarova 6-4, 7-5. Halep said that the match had been much better than her first match there, adding that she was happy to win in two sets as Safarova was up 5-4, Sport24 reported.

Halep earned an interesting rematch with fifth-seeded Sharapova, who beat fellow Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-4, 7-6 (7/2). Sharapova had to rally from a break down three times in the second set but managed to finish it off in two.

Ukrainian teenager Elina Svitolina, who took out double Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova in the second round, claimed her second seeded victim with a defeat of Spain's number 15 Carla Suarez Navarro 4-6, 6-4, 6-4. She'll next face former world number one Ana Ivanovic, a 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 winner over Svetlana Kuznetsova.

Fourth-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland cruised past Germany's Sabine Lisicki 6-1, 6-1 and will take on Denmark's Caroline Wozniacki, a 7-5, 6-2 winner over sixth-seeded German Angelique Kerber, the report added.