Dinara was eliminated in the third round of the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami on Sunday. Seeded second and receiving a first round bye, she handled Mathilde Johansson in the second round, 61 63, before falling to Samantha Stosur, 61 64. It was her first loss against Stosur in four career meetings.

Despite the defeat, Dinara can become No.1 in the world for the first time if Serena Williams fails to reach the final.  However, Dinara expressed her disappointment after the loss that she left her ranking’s fate in the hands of others.

“It’s very disappointing,” Dinara said. “This is what I’m playing for, to be there and to play well. Suddenly I go on the court and I don’t even fight for it until the second set. It was bad behavior from my side. The champions, they don’t do this. This is a good punishment for me. I have to get smarter on the court.”

Dinara’s best career result in Miami is a quarterfinal appearance last year.

Dinara received the Most Improved Player for the 2008 season at the WTA Player Awards during a ceremony at the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami on March 26.

Dinara’s remarkable 2008 included finishing the year at No.3 in the rankings, reaching her first Grand Slam final at Roland Garros and winning a silver medal in singles at the Beijing Olympics. She also won a career-high four Sony Ericsson WTA Tour singles titles, captured the US Open Series and qualified for her first season-ending Sony Ericsson Championships in Doha.

Eighth-seeded Victoria Azarenka beat Dinara for the first time in four career meetings, 67(4) 61 63, Wednesday in the quarterfinals of the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.

“From the second set, I just gave all into her hands, so she started to dominate,” Dinara said. “Especially with her, I cannot do this.  She’s a very aggressive player, so she was just better than me.

“In third set at 3-1, 30-15, and again I gave everything into her hands.  I just went away from my game every time I was up.”

Dinara would have reached the No.1 ranking for the first time if she’s beaten Azarenka and then won her semifinal match. She also had a chance to reach No.1 if she’d defeated Serena Williams in the Australian Open final earlier this year.

Dinara tied her career-best showing at Indian Wells, as she also reached the quarters in 2006.

Dinara wants to make some changes for next week’s Sony Ericsson Open in Miami.

“You know, I just want for the next tournament I finally play my game and play like I’ve been playing like last year,” Dinara said. “Since Australia, I’m playing defensive, and it’s not me.  I just want to play aggressive.  That’s all.”

Dinara is two wins away from reaching No.1 in the world for the first time in her career after a 75 64 win Tuesday over Jill Craybas in the round of 16 at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.

“If I deserve to be there, I will be there,” Dinara said of the No.1 ranking. “Doesn’t matter comes this week, next week, or during the year.”

Dinara raised her record against Craybas to 5-0, though almost all of the matches have been very close, including the last time they played, last year in the second round at Indian Wells.

Dinara has now matched her career-best result at Indian Wells, a quarterfinal appearance in 2006. Next up is No.8 seed Victoria Azarenka, whom Dinara is 3-0 against.

Dinara is through to the round of 16 at the BNP Paribas Open after two fairly tight victories during the first week of a tournament wrought with upsets.

Dinara, who is seeded first at Indian Wells, will reach No.1 in the world for the first time if she advances to the final.

“Definitely if I play like this, I do not deserve to be there,” Dinara said after her third round win. “If I want to be there, I have to level out my game.”

Dinara drew laughter with her response to a question about lessons she’s learned from her brother, Marat.

“Just not to do like he’s doing,” she said. “Do completely opposite from him.”

After her first round bye, Dinara converted four of six break point opportunities during her defeat of Tsvetana Pironkova, 64 61, then edged No.28 seed Peng Shuai, 75 64.

Dinara’s best career result at Indian Wells is a quarterfinal appearance in 2006.

Some of the biggest names in women’s tennis, including Dinara, have united to send messages of support and donate personal items of value to the fire-affected communities in Victoria, Australia.

The Sony Ericsson WTA Tour has joined forces with the Australian tennis community to raise funds and the morale of those affected by the bushfires.

In addition to Dinara, Tour players who donated items to this important cause include Casey Dellacqua, Daniela Hantuchova, Ana Ivanovic, Samantha Stosur, Rennae Stubbs, Ai Sugiyama and Serena Williams. These items will be auctioned off to raise money for the Tennis Bushfire Relief Appeal. 

Tennis authorities have also put their long-term commitment to rebuild the fire-affected communities into action today with the first of many visits to fire-affected tennis clubs.

Tennis Australian staff visited the bushfire-affected towns of Flowerdale and Wandong to provide help, support and aid the community in getting back to playing tennis sooner.

Clinics were conducted in conjunction with community meetings to boost morale and give the communities a real sense of the support, which will be provided throughout the whole rebuilding process.

Club committee members, council members and representatives of Tennis Bushfire Relief Appeal met to discuss setting up work plans for the two tennis clubs, while an Aviva Tennis Hot Shots clinic was held for club/community members and their families.