NEW YORK - Five-times grand slam winner Martina Hingis was ousted 6-2 6-4 in the second round by unseeded Virginie Razzano of France today to suffer her quickest exit ever at the US pen tennis championship.
Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams and Amelie Mauresmo all made it through their matches to
advance to the third round.
The eighth-seeded Hingis, returning to competition this season after a three-year absence, struggled with her serve, losing six successive service games at one point, and was erratic with her groundstrokes.
In eight previous tilts at Flushing Meadows, the worst showing for the 25-year-old Swiss, who won the 1997 title, were two fourth-round results.
The victory enabled Razzano to match her best showing ever in a grand slam, having reached the third round three times in 27 previous attempts at the slams. In five previous US Opens she had never advanced past the second round.
The 112th-ranked Razzano, 23, will meet Kaia Kanepi of Estonia in the third round.
Third-seeded Maria Sharapova pulverised Frenchwoman Emilie Loit and Serena Williams recovered from a slow start to beat Daniela Hantuchov.
Top seed Amelie Mauresmo also fought off American Meghann Shaughnessy 6-4 6-3 to make the next round.
The 19-year-old Sharapova, the 2004 Wimbledon champion and an Open semifinalist last year, took only 52 minutes to dispatch the 27-year-old Loit 6-0 6-1, who seemed to have no weapons to threaten the Russian.
Loit was credited with just one winner in the second-round match, coming on a forehand that crawled over the netcord to save a match point in the last game.
Sharapova will next meet compatriot Elena Likhovtseva, the 32nd seed, who beat Australian Nicole Pratt to advance.
Mauresmo, the Wimbledon and Australian Open champion, was stretched harder than expected and needed one hour 51 minutes to claim victory and a clash with Italian Mara Santangelo.
Shaughnessy, who won the WTA Tour title at Forest Hills title last weekend, forced Mauresmo to produce some of her best tennis to reach the last 32.
After taking a tough first set, the Frenchwoman broke early in the second and then saved three break points in the sixth game before holding on for victory.
Two time former champion Serena Williams beat 17th seed Daniela Hantuchova 7-5 6-3.
The unseeded American, who needed a wildcard to get into the event after an injury-hit season, trailed 5-2 in the first set before storming back.
Hantuchova began well and served for the set at 5-3 but two poor drop shots handed Williams the break back.
From then on, the former world number one was always in command and cruised through to a meeting with Serbian 16th seed Ana Ivanovic or Aiko Nakamura of Japan.
- REUTERS
NEW YORK - Five-times grand slam winner Martina Hingis was ousted 6-2 6-4 in the second round by unseeded Virginie Razzano of France today to suffer her quickest exit ever at the US pen tennis championship.
Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams and Amelie Mauresmo all made it through their matches to
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