Capriati books Serena showdown

Jennifer Capriati booked a Wimbledon quarter-final appointment with defending champion Serena Williams after blasting out Nadia Petrova in the fourth round on court one.

The American, seeded seventh, sounded an ominous warning to her rivals with an emphatic 6-4 6-4 victory over Petrova which would have been more convincing had she made the most of a stack of break points.

Petrova displayed plenty of courage, especially in the second set which was marked by a dreadful start by the Russian 21-year-old, but ultimately she was outclassed by an opponent who looks close to her best.

Capriati, who reached two Wimbledon semi-finals a decade apart in 1991 and 2001, appeared in some distress early on for some reason and complained to the umpire.

But once settled Capriati began the task of neutralising the 10th seed's serve and she managed this in the fifth, converting a seventh break point of the game with a blistering forehand which wrong-footed her opponent.

Petrova rescued three break points in the seventh, took Capriati's serve in the eighth and then found herself broken again as the American closed out the set 6-4.

Some of Capriati's strokes put her on a different level to Petrova who was being outgunned at the baseline by her adversary.

She was broken in the first game of the second set but managed to save the third which Capriati had also moved to within one point of winning.

Petrova steadied the ship by regaining her composure but she never seemed capable of upsetting Capriati's serve, despite a brave attempt to claw her way back into the reckoning.

The outcome was inevitable and Capriati racked up two match points in the 10th before clinching victory with the first as a Petrova forehand sailed out of play.