PARIS (AP) - For one full set, Maria Sharapova was about as bad as can be.
The French Open's defending champion could not direct the ball where she wanted at the start of her quarterfinal against Serbia's Jelena Jankovic. Point after point ended with a mistake by Sharapova - long, wide, into the net, 20 unforced errors in all.
It added up to only the sixth time in 626 career matches Sharapova dropped a first set at love. She lost all of those others, never even forcing a third set. Sharapova did not go quietly Wednesday, though, turning up the level of her shot-making and the volume of her "Come on!" shouts on the way to beating the 18th-seeded Jankovic 0-6, 6-4, 6-3.
Down the stretch, Jankovic faded, losing the final four games.
In today's semifinals, Sharapova will face No. 3 Victoria Azarenka of Belarus, the two-time Australian Open champion, who eliminated her friend and former doubles partner, No. 12 Maria Kirilenko of Russia, 7-6 (3), 6-2 to reach the semifinals at the fourth major tournament in a row.
The other women's semifinal is No. 1 Serena Williams, a 15-time Grand Slam champion, against No. 5 Sara Errani of Italy. They won their quarterfinals Tuesday.