Davenport ends young Croatian's run

This time there was no phantom point, just a masterclass from Lindsay Davenport as Karolina Sprem’s colourful Wimbledon campaign came to an end court one.

The young Croatian is sure to be back at the All England Club and will no doubt soon develop into a genuine contender for the women’s singles crown.

But from the moment she lost her opening service game this afternoon, the girl who controversially put out two-time champion Venus Williams last week was always second best to a woman who knows just what is needed to claim a Grand Slam title.

The former world number one never looked back after making the early breakthrough and went on to record a rapid 6-2 6-2 victory in which she demonstrated her full range of passing shot from the baseline and forecourt drop-shots.

The 1999 champion looked completely relaxed against her teenage opponent, who had plenty of passion in her play and seemed to have the majority of the support on court one.

Without really having been troubled, the number five seed found herself serving for the match inside 50 minutes.

The former world number one used her cross-court game to perfection as she set up two match points, and converted with another fine forehand which left Sprem wrong-footed and sent the American through to the semi-finals.

Davenport will face either the Japanese 11th seed Ai Sugiyama or Russian Maria Sharapova, who is seeded 13.