Sharapova, Clijsters, Hingis reach third round at Aussie Open

Tennis Betting Lines

01/18/2007 - Melbourne, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A trio of former world No. 1s -- Maria Sharapova, Kim Clijsters and Martina Hingis -- were among Thursday's second-round winners at the 2007 Australian Open.

The top-seeded and reigning U.S. Open champion Sharapova blew past her fellow Russian Anastassia Rodionova 6-0, 6-3. Sharapova was sharp on Day 4 after struggling to beat France's Camille Pin here on Tuesday amid sweltering 100- plus-degree heat at Melbourne Park.

The two-time Grand Slam champion Sharapova, a semifinalist here the last two years, will meet 30th-seeded Italian Tathiana Garbin in the third round.

Rain delayed the start of Thursday's play on all outside courts, but Clijsters and Hingis were able to complete their matches thanks to the roofs over the show arenas -- Rod Laver and Vodafone.

The fourth-seeded Clijsters clocked Japan's Akiko Morigami 6-3, 6-0 in 59 minutes, while a sixth-seeded Hingis humbled Russian Alla Kudryavtseva 6-2, 6-2. Clijsters is fresh off her title last week in Sydney.

The 2005 U.S. Open champion Clijsters has reached at least the semifinals in her last four trips to Melbourne, where she was the 2004 runner-up to her fellow Belgian stalwart Justine Henin-Hardenne. Hingis, a six-time Aussie Open finalist, is a five-time major champion who captured this Grand Slam event back-to-back-to-back from 1997-99 and was the runner-up from 2000-02.

Clijsters has already announced that she will retire from professional tennis after this season.

"You appreciate it so much more," Clijsters said. "You think it's the last time, you just try to suck everything in, and it's a good feeling to have. I do enjoy it. I've always enjoyed coming here but this year it's even more special than in the past."

Up next for Clijsters will be 29th-seeded Ukrainian Alona Bondarenko, while Hingis will encounter Japan's Aiko Nakamura.

In other action involving top-10 seeds, No. 8 Swiss Patty Schnyder handled Chinese Shuai Peng 7-5, 6-3 and No. 9 Russian Dinara Safina subdued France's Youlia Fedossova 6-3, 6-2.

Twelfth-seeded Russian Anna Chakvetadze got past American Laura Granville 6-2, 5-7, 6-1; 13th-seeded Serbian Ana Ivanovic held off Poland's Agnieszka Radwanska 6-2, 3-6, 6-2; 15th-seeded Slovakian Daniela Hantuchova overcame France's Emilie Loit 4-6, 6-3, 6-4; and 19th-seeded Chinese Na Li leveled Spaniard Lourdes Dominguez Lino 6-0, 6-2.

An upset came when American Ashley Harkleroad took out 17th-seeded German Anna-Lena Groenefeld 6-2, 6-2.

Other seeded second-round winners were No. 22 Russian Vera Zvonareva and the aforementioned Bondarenko and Garbin.

Recently-married Croat Jelena Kostanic Tosic toppled 24th-seeded Aussie crowd favorite Samantha Stosur 6-4, 2-6, 6-2.

Other winners were Aussie Alicia Molik and the aforementioned Nakamura. The once-promising Molik came back to beat Estonian Kaia Kanepi 1-6, 6-3, 6-2 and set-up a third-rounder against Schnyder, who's reached at least the quarterfinals here in each of the last three years.

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