Sam Stosur - 2010 Family Circle Cup Champion
IN PHOTO: Samantha Stosur of Australia holds her trophy after winning the singles final at the Family Circle Cup Tennis Tournament in Charleston, South Carolina, April 18, 2010. Stosur defeated Vera Zvonareva of Russia. REUTERS/Tami Chappell REUTERS/Tami Chappell

Sam Stosur has reached the quarterfinals of the 2015 Nurnberger GasteinLadies. Stosur scored easy straight-sets victory over Czech Republic’s Klara Koukalova 6-1 6-0 on Wednesday.

The second-seeded Australian only needed 49 minutes to dispatch Koukalova. She saved three break points in the first set. She was in fine form during the second set even though she had two double faults on match point to seal the victory. Stosur now has a 5-2 win-loss record against Koukalova.

World No. 23 Stosur, who won the 2011 US Open, was in the hunt for her second title this season. She has now advanced in the last eight, her first quarterfinals since claiming the title (her seventh overall) in Strasbourg in May where she defeated Kristina Mladenovic 3-6 6-2 6-3. She will face unseeded Danka Kovinic, who came through to the next round after winning over lucky loser Richel Hogenkamp 6-3 6-1. The Montenegro native is ranked 86th in the Women’s Tennis Association rankings. This season, Stosur has lost nine times to players that are ranked lower than her. She recently lost to 80th-ranked Lara Arruabarrena in second round of the Bastad event.

Stosur and Kovinic played their first and only meeting so far in the first round of the 2015 Wimbledon Championships. The Australian beat Kovinic in straight sets of the grasscourt grand slam tournament.

Speaking via Gastein-ladies.at, Stosur said that she wants to be able to continue her good run in Bad Gastein, Austria. “The tournament is beautiful, the scenery around it as well,” Stosur said. “I feel very comfortable, now I want to win the next match.”

Meanwhile, unseeded players Polona Hercog and Annika Beck also move on to the quarterfinals. Hercog upset fifth seed Lucie Hradecka of the Czech Republic 6-3 6-3. Beck came through after scoring straight-sets victory over Denisa Allertova 6-2 6-3. Hercog will face the winner of the match between third seed Karin Knapp and Johanna Larsson. Beck, on the other hand, anticipates the outcome of the second round match featuring seventh seed Anna Karolina Schmeidlova and Andreea Mitu.

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