ACURA CLASSIC: SOMETHING GETS LOST IN THE APOLOGY.

Byline: Lauren Gustus Staff Writer

CARLSBAD - For Anastasia Myskina, the hardest work on Friday came after her 7-5, 6-2 victory over fellow Russian Maria Sharapova at the Acura Classic.

Myskina, the No. 3 seed, swallowed her pride and apologized to Sharapova for an off-hand remark that morphed into something much bigger in Russia.

``I really respect Maria,'' Myskina said. ``She is practicing here now and that's OK. I think she is a great player.''

Count Myskina as among the toughest competitors against her countrywomen, but never a detractor.

``In the Russian papers today it was that I didn't respect her as a player,'' Myskina said. ``I was really upset this morning.''

Days ago, Myskina said Sharapova, who has lived in the U.S. for nearly 10 years, was more Americanized than she was Russian. Sharapova responded by saying she ``bled Russian blood.''

Sharapova, eyes downcast, spoke with a runny nose and red eyes after the match. The 17-year-old Wimbledon champion clearly wanted the win as much as Myskina, who successfully defended her place at the top of Russian tennis.

``There's no explanation other than when I had to pick up my level I didn't pick it up,'' Sharapova said.

Sharapova coughed up a lead 5-2 in the first, dropping nine consecutive games and the set. She went for it - but the overaggressive play meant too many balls sailed out. She lost her serve twice on double faults.

``Her being a few years older than me she finds a way to win,'' Sharapova said.

The Myskina match was only an encore to the day's earlier mayhem.

Serena Williams, not to be outdone, vanished in a flash of hot-pink spandex.

The top seed and No. 1 tennis diva withdrew hours before her quarterfinal meeting with Vera Zvonareva, citing an inflamed knee. She joined sister Venus, who withdrew Tuesday with a lingering wrist injury, on the disabled list.

``I always wanted to be like Venus, maybe too much,'' Serena said. ``I have to do everything that she does.''

Serena addressed Center Court an hour before her scheduled match, dressed in bright pink running pants and a white t-shirt.

She said she felt pain reaching for a drop shot against Elena Bovina on Thursday night. Serena recounted the point, saying, ``I'll give you the dramatic version, as I am an actress.''

The withdrawal came as a surprise. After her straight-sets win over Bovina the night before Williams said she played better than she had ``in weeks.''

Her exit came two days from the year anniversary of a tendon knee surgery that kept the former world No. 1 off-court for more than six months. The sisters both still plan to play in the Olympic Games, which start in two weeks.

``It's really something I look forward to playing,'' Serena said. ``I don't want to take the chance on missing out on the Olympics.''

Williams, who is 28-5 this year, drove to Los Angeles for an MRI later in the day.

Vera Zvonareva, one of three Russians in the semis, advanced on Serena's withdrawal and will play Myskina in the day's second semifinal.

No. 4 Davenport will play Elena Dementieva in the first. Davenport earned her 12th consecutive win against Ai Sugiyama, 6-1, 6-3, in less than an hour. No. 5 Dementieva beat unseeded American Amy Frazier 6-2, 6-1.

Davenport re-injured her knee in a loss to Dementieva at the French Open. But she scaled back her schedule as she started traveling with a trainer and is now healthy.

``It's made a huge difference having my therapist with me,'' Davenport said, adding that she sympathized with Serena. ``I can understand what she's going through. If I had a knee problem I wouldn't take the court.''

Serena hinted she felt pressure from the WTA to play in Montreal next week, despite the injury. Any further damage would certainly jeopardize her Olympic and U.S. Open bids.

``People don't care whether you're really hurt or not,'' Serena said. ``Everything is about making the dollar. That's what it's all about these days.''

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Anastasia Myskina returns a backhand during her quarterfinal victory over Maria Sharapova at the Acura Classic in Carlsbad on Friday.

Sandy Huffaker/Associated Press

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