Washington Kastles Players Advance Down Under!

Kastles stars Serena Williams, Leander Paes, Rennae Stubbs, and Nadia Petrova all advanced to the quarterfinals at the 2010 Australian Open - this year's first Grand Slam.

Cumulatively, these Kastles players have posted an incredible 21-3 record thus far in Melbourne.

The Kastles marquee superstar, Serena Williams, and WTT Men's MVP Leander Paes have led the charge, posting a combined 13-0 record.

Serena, the #1 ranked singles player in the world and the Australian Open defending champion, has won her first eight matches at the Australian -- four in the singles draw and four in doubles with her sister Venus and has advanced to the quarterfinals in singles and semifinals in doubles.

Leander has also posted a perfect record in the Men's Doubles and Mixed Doubles draws. He and partner Lukas Dlouhy, who captured the US Open Men's Doubles title in September, are the 3rd seed and have yet to drop a set in their first three matches. And, he and Cara Black, the #1 seed in Mixed Doubles have won their first two matches in straight sets.

Two of the biggest stories thus far at the Australian Open have involved the Kastles' other star players.

In Women's Doubles, Rennae Stubbs and Lisa Raymond - once the #1 ranked team in world have played inspired tennis in their first tournament back as partners since they parted ways almost five years ago. They have won their first four matches to advance to the the semifinals. To capture their first Australian Open title in ten years, they will have to first defeat Serena and Venus in a semifinal showdown.

And, Nadia Petrova regained the form that once earned her a Top 3 world ranking by dismantling US Open Champion Kim Clijsters 6-0, 6-1 and beating #3 seed Svetlana Kuznetsova in successive matches. However, Nadia's magical run ended yesterday in the quarterfinals when she dropped a hard fought match against seven-time Grand Slam champion Justine Henin, 7-6, 7-5.

You can follow Serena, Leander, and Rennae throughout the tournament by visiting www.washingtonkastles.com and clicking on the 2010 Australian Open banner. Watch the Australian Open matches live on ESPN2, Tennis Channel and ESPN360.com.

UPCOMING MATCHES

Women's Singles (Quarterfinals) | Serena Williams (1) vs. Victoria Azarenka (7)

Men's Doubles (Quarterfinals) Leander Paes / Lukas Dlouhy (3) vs. Ivo Karlovic / Dusan Vemic

Mixed Doubles (Third Round) Leander Paes / Cara Black (1) vs. Elena Vesnina / Andy Ram (8)

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