Dinara Safina after her victory on Monday. (AFP)

Paris: One point from the quarter finals, Maria Sharapova again came up short at the French Open. Seeking the only Grand Slam title she has yet to win, the top-ranked Sharapova blew a big lead and lost to fellow Russian Dinara Safina in the fourth round on Monday, 7-6 (8-8), 6-7 (5-7), 2-6.

Sharapova won five consecutive games in the second set to go ahead 5-2, and held a match point serving at 5-3. She also led 5-2 in the tiebreaker before losing five consecutive points, then unravelled down the stretch, losing the final four games.

Sharapova’s shrieks and screeches reached top volume as the match slipped away, and the noise seemed to annoy fans on Court Suzanne Lenglen. They whistled and booed Sharapova as she left the court after the match, and she didn’t acknowledge the crowd.

Faring better was Roger Federer, another top-ranked player seeking his first French Open title. He reached the quarter finals by beating Julien Benneteau of France 6-4, 7-5, 7-5.

Federer’s next opponent will be No. 24-seeded Fernando Gonzalez, who ended American Robby Ginepri’s surprising run at Roland Garros, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3, 6-1. Ginepri was the last American in either singles draw.

Safina, the younger sister of two-time Grand Slam champion Marat Safin, also eliminated Sharapova in the fourth round at Roland Garros in 2006 and went on to the quarter finals. The No. 13-seeded Safina’s next opponent will be No. 7 Elena Dementieva, who won another all-Russian match-up against No. 11 Vera Zvonareva, 6-4, 1-6, 6-2.

Trailing Sharapova 3-5 in the second set, Safina saved match point with a backhand winner, then broke two points later when Sharapova pushed a forehand wide. In the second tiebreaker, Sharapova double-faulted for 5-4 and then hit three errant backhands, which evened out the match.

But the momentum favoured Safina. Sharapova’s customary squeals during rallies became more intense during the sixth game of the final set, and she often screamed at herself after points. She erased three break points before conceding the game with a forehand into the net. Safina won 10 of the final 12 points. When Sharapova hit a wild forehand on the final point, Safina fell to her knees with glee.

Federer hit 23 winners despite the damp conditions. He was broken serving for each of the first two sets, but recovered to close them out, finishing the second set in steady rain that prompted a 90-minute interruption .

Federer reached the final eight for the 16th Grand Slam in a row. The French Open is the only major championship he hasn’t won. Ginepri became the first U.S. man to reach the fourth round at Roland Garros since Andre Agassi in 2003, and he hung with Gonzalez until losing serve twice in a row late in the second set.

Elena Dementieva advanced to the women’s quarter finals, winning five consecutive games to start the final set and beating fellow Russian Vera Zvonareva 6-4, 1-6, 6-2.

For the No. 7-seeded Dementieva, it’s the best showing at Roland Garros since she was runner-up to champion Anastasia Myskina in 2004. (AP)