French teenager Tatiana Golovin [ Images ] sent second seed Elena Dementieva [ Images ] tumbling out of the Paris Open with a clear-cut 6-4, 6-4 win in the quarter-finals on Friday.

Golovin, ranked 135th in the world but who showed her potential by reaching the fourth round of the Australian Open [ Images ] last month, thrilled the home crowd by taking a 4-0 lead in the first set.

The Moscow-born player, who celebrated her 16th birthday in January, won in one hour and 27 minutes. It was her first appearance in the quarter-finals of a WTA tournament.

She will next meet compatriot Mary Pierce [ Images ], who overpowered Russian Elena Bovina 6-3, 6-4.

"I'll be very pleased to face Tatiana because she reminds me of what I was at her age," said the 29-year-old Pierce, the winner of the Paris Open in 1998 and of the French Open [ Images ] in 2000.

Top seed Kim Clijsters [ Images ], meanwhile, battled her way into the last four with a gritty 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 victory over Silvia Farina Elia.

The 20th-ranked Italian led 6-3, 5-2 before the Belgian world number two found her rhythm, clawing her way back to win the second set, breaking serve at 3-3 in the decider and sealing victory on her first match point.

"I knew it was going to be a hard game, particularly because I lacked match practice," said Clijsters, playing her first tournament since losing to Justine Henin-Hardenne in the Australian Open final.

"I made too many mistakes in the first set because I was trying to win the points too quickly. At 2-5, I decided to concentrate on keeping the ball inside the lines."

Clijsters will face Russian qualifier Dinara Safina [ Images ] in the semi-finals. The younger sister of former world number one Marat Safin [ Images ] ousted Italian fifth seed Francesca Schiavone 6-2, 4-6, 6-4.