World number one Caroline Wozniacki crashed out of the prestigious China Open after slumping to Italian veteran Flavia Pennetta 3-6, 6-0, 7-6 (2) in the quarterfinals on Friday.

The 29-year-old Italian taught the world number one a good lesson on how to score from the baseline by hitting efficient and angled groundstrokes and closed out the match with an spectacular drop ball in the tiebreak of the third set.

It was close in the first set as both players hardly held serve. Wozniacki dropped serve twice but broke back three times to routinely take the set at 6-3.

The momentum, however, totally swung to Pennetta's side in the second set as the Italian blitzed the 21-year-old Dane at love.

Wozniacki, overall a defesive baseliner, found herself trailing 4-1 just 20 minutes into the in the final set, and then it was Pennetta's turn to make unforced errors, which helped the Dane claw back to 6-6.

Wozniacki, the defending champion, cut a poor figure again in the deciding tiebreak where she lost at 7-2.