Sharapova edges past Davenport

Defending champion Maria Sharapova [Images] beat Lindsay Davenport [Images] 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 to reach the semi-finals of the WTA Championships late on Thursday.

While the loss was disappointing for Davenport, it did not matter in the larger scheme of things. She had already qualified for the semis out of the Green group in the elite eight-woman round robin competition.

"I knew before the match started that I was in," said Davenport. "It was a bizarre feeling walking out. It was hard. There are no ranking points, no extra money, nothing like that. That's a shame. But when I started losing, pride hit me."

France's [Images] Amelie Mauresmo and Mary Pierce have qualified from the Black group.

Mauresmo scored a 6-2, 6-3 win over Russia's [Images] Elena Dementieva and has a 2-0 record after an earlier victory over world number two Kim Clijsters [Images]. Pierce also stands 2-0 after defeating Clijsters and Dementieva.

Clijsters, who came into the week hoping to seize the number one raking from Davenport, cannot reach the semis, handing the year-end top spot to Davenport.

Davenport finished the round robin with a 2-1 record, while Switzerland's [Images] Patty Schnyder and Russia's Nadia Petrova, who Davenport beat earlier, were knocked out of the competition.

Schnyder defeated Petrova 6-0, 5-7, 6-4 on Thursday, but finished with a 1-2 record, falling to Sharapova and Davenport.

Petrova holds a 0-2 record going into her Friday match against Sharapova, who has a 2-0 record, so the contest will be a formality.

Sharapova came into her match against Davenport with a 2-1 edge over the American, but had suffered an embarrassing 6-0, 6-0 defeat to Davenport the last time they played at Indian Wells.

She stuttered near the end of the second set, failing to serve the match out at 5-4 when Davenport forced her into a forehand error.

Sharapova then went into a brief mental funk and was broken to love to lose the set when she erred on another forehand.

In the third set, the 18-year-old regained the spring in her step and took it to the 29-year-old, breaking Davenport to 3-2 on a sharply angled forehand crosscourt.

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