Second seed Williams must wait another year for her first singles title here after Russian 19th seed Nadia Petrova showed a steely resolve and a superior ability to cope with the swirling breeze that dogged Day Eight of the claycourt slam.
And despite Andy Murray’s professed enthusiasm for playing on clay, the British fourth seed’s game was again found wanting on the slowest surface of them all as he became the highest-ranked man so far to exit the tournament.
The women’s event had been shaping up for another Williams sisters final, but Petrova outclassed Venus, who opted for a more modest version of the black lacy corset that has set Parisian tongues wagging all week.
“It’s my most dramatic French Open,” said Petrova after booking a place in the last eight against fellow Russian Elena Dementieva with the 6-4 6-3 triumph.
Explaining her first defeat by Petrova in five meetings, Williams said her game had malfunctioned in the cold.
