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BERLIN (AP) -Top-ranked Justine Henin lost to Dinara Safina 5-7, 6-3, 6-1 Thursday in the third round of the German Open.
Henin's loss to the 17th-ranked Russian was her latest setback this year. In her previous match at the Sony Ericsson Open, Henin lost to Serena Williams 6-2, 6-0. That came after losing in straight sets to Maria Sharapova at the Australian Open.
Henin, who took a month off with a knee injury, had hoped to restore her confidence at the German Open in time to win a fifth French Open title in June.
Safina never had taken a set off Henin in five previous meetings.
The Russian led 4-2 in the first set before Henin recovered to break back. The Belgian's chances faded when Safina lobbed her for a 3-0 lead in the final set.
Henin, however, saved five match points while trailing 5-0 in the final set.
Third-seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova was also upset, losing to Alona Bondarenko 6-1, 2-6, 6-2, and No. 7 Elena Dementieva reached the quarterfinals by beating Vera Dushevina 7-5, 6-3.
Williams plays 11th-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska later Thursday, while second-ranked Ana Ivanovic is also in action.
