French Open finalist Samantha Stosur and fifth-seeded Kim Clijsters reached the quarterfinals of the Eastbourne International with contrasting performances yesterday.

Third-seeded Stosur outlasted Daniela Hantuchova 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, needing three match points to close out a second-round match her Slovakian opponent started well.

Clijsters, who won the Eastbourne title in 2005, needed just 38 minutes to sweep aside Czech lefthander Lucie Safarova 6-1, 6-0 and continue her good form in the Wimbledon warmup tournament.

In the men's draw, top-seeded Nicolas Almagro of Spain was carried off court on a stretcher as he retired hurt against Uzbekistan's Denis Istomin while trailing 6-4, 1-0.

Almagro slipped while trying to turn on the baseline and suffered a right hip injury.

There was also a retirement in the women's competition, when Aravane Rezai of France sustained a right wrist injury and allowed Spain's Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez to progress, 6-2, 3-0.

Victoria Azarenka of Belarus made the last eight by overwhelming British junior Heather Watson 6-1, 6-1 and eighth-seeded Marion Bartoli of France needed three match points before defeating Hungary's Agnes Szavay 3-6, 6-4, 6-4.

Hantuchova, a finalist at Eastbourne in 2004, did not drop a point in her first three service games but Stosur, coming off an impressive run on clay in Paris, forced a forehand error to break for 4-3 and then struck a forehand winner to break again for the set.

Three breaks from 1-1 left Hantuchova leading 3-2 in the second set and she broke again to take it when the Australian hit a double-fault.