The resilient Russian was down but not out. She squandered a big lead in the second set Wednesday but ended Williams' 18-match Grand Slam winning streak in the French Open quarterfinals, 7-6 (3), 5-7, 7-5.

Williams, seeded second, was seeking her third successive major title and the 11th of her career.

The No. 7-seeded Kuznetsova faced a set point serving at 5-6 in the first set but erased it with a slam and won that set. After her tumble in the second set, Williams rallied three points from defeat to even the match, then took a 3-1 lead in the third.

Kuznetsova mounted the final comeback and broke serve in the last game when Williams pushed a backhand wide.

The seesaw struggle was this close: Midway through the third set, each player had won 100 points.

Kuznetsova, the 2004 U.S. Open champion, seeks her second major title. Her opponent Thursday will be Samantha Stosur of Australia, who reached her first major semifinal by beating Sorana Cirstea of Romania 6-1, 6-3.

Stosur, 25, has never won a tour title.

Kuznetsova was serving one point from a 5-2 lead in the second set when she turned her right ankle in pursuit of a shot and fell on her back. She rose with clay covering the back of her shirt and the length of her right arm.

She was unhurt and play quickly resumed, but it took a while for Kuznetsova to regain her footing.

The Russian won with high-risk tennis, whacking winners into both corners and sometimes choosing angles that surprised Williams. Kuznetsova showed lots of variety, too — when she hit a crosscourt lob, Williams staggered helplessly as she watched the ball land beyond her reach.

Williams was sometimes betrayed by uncertain footwork on the clay, which led to repeated errors on her forehand side down the stretch.

On the men's side, Robin Soderling's improbable run at Roland Garros has reached the semifinals, and he'll face Fernando Gonzalez on Friday. In 22 Grand Slam tournaments, it's the first time Soderling has advanced beyond the third round.

"I don't want to be too happy, because I have another match coming up," he said.

As an encore to his upset of Rafael Nadal, the No. 23-seeded Soderling beat No. 10 Nikolay Davydenko 6-1, 6-3, 6-1. Davydenko twice reached the French Open semifinals and was singled out by Roger Federer as this week's potential champion, but Soderling keeps defying expectations in Paris.

"I always knew that I could play really, really good tennis," said the 24-year-old Soderling.

He has beaten three consecutive players whose best surface is clay — Davydenko, Nadal and Spaniard David Ferrer. He'll face another experienced clay-courter in the No. 12-seeded Gonzalez, who became the first Chilean since 1960 to reach the Roland Garros semifinals when he beat No. 3 Andy Murray 6-3, 3-6, 6-0, 6-4.

Gonzalez conceded the matchup against Soderling is a surprise.

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