Davenport struggles to third round

MELBOURNE, Australia -- Lindsay Davenport got a tough workout from Karolina Sprem in the second round of the Australian Open before advancing Wednesday with a 7-6 (4), 6-3 victory.

After trading breaks in the third and fourth games, the first set went on serve, with Davenport winning the 12th game at love to force a tiebreaker.

Trailing 3-1, the top-ranked Davenport rallied after Sprem double- faulted, winning six of the last seven points and claiming the set with consecutive forehand winners.

Davenport, the 2000 Australian champion, had six breakpoint chances in the second set before finally converting after the sixth game went to deuce six times.

Two of Davenport's three previous wins over Sprem have come at majors.

She won in the fourth-round here last year en route to the final and the quarterfinals at Wimbledon in 2004, after Sprem had upset then defending champion Venus Williams.

Sprem worked Davenport around with some big serves and powerful forehands in the 1 hour, 25-minute match on Vodafone Arena, but let herself down with nine double-faults.

Davenport was consistent, winning 80 percent of points on her first serve, firing six aces and hitting 18 winners.

She next plays the winner of Wednesday's match between Russians Maria Kirilenko and Galina Voskoboeva.

In another women's match, Olga Savchuk of Ukraine beat 23rd- seeded Jelena Jankovic 6-3, 6-4 and Elena Vesnina had a 6-0, 7-5 win over Julia Schruff, who had ousted ninth-seeded Elena Dementieva in the first round.

Defending women's champion Serena Williams was to play Camille Pin of France later Wednesday, while No. 4 Maria Sharapova faced American Ashley Harkleroad.

Men's No. 2 Andy Roddick was scheduled to play Wesley Moodie.

On Tuesday, Martina Hingis returned to Rod Laver Arena a little older, a little stronger and a little wiser, easily winning her first match in Melbourne since 2002 over Vera Zvonareva 6-1, 6-2.

Now ranked No. 349, Hingis was back for the first time since playing in six consecutive Australian Open finals -- she won three straight starting in 1997, then lost three straight.

"It was beautiful to walk in there," said Hingis, who quit in 2002 because of persistent foot and heel problems. "I could already feel the atmosphere coming from the previous years.

"You don't know how good it feels -- this stadium has been so good for me."

Other women's winners Tuesday included second-seeded Kim Clijsters, third-seeded Amelie Mauresmo and No. 5 Mary Pierce.

Men's winners Tuesday included top-ranked Roger Federer and No. 3 Lleyton Hewitt, who lost the final here last year to Marat Safin.

Hewitt, the home favorite, had to rally again and again to beat the Czech Republic's Robin Vik 6-4, 2-6, 5-7, 7-6 (4), 6-3 in 3 hours, 45 minutes.

Federer overwhelmed No. 195th-ranked Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan 6-2, 6-3, 6-2.

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