Tennis: Top seeds Federer, Mauresmo stay in cruise control

NEW YORK - Top seeds Roger Federer and Amelie Mauresmo remained on cruise control at the US Open tennis today, winning easily under sunny skies at Flushing Meadows.

After rain wiped out nearly all of the matches yesterday, clear skies and cool temperatures greeted the players as tournament officials scrambled to make up for lost time.

Defending champion Federer won the first three games of his fourth-round match without losing a point against Marc Gicquel and settled for a 6-3 7-6 6-3 victory over the little-known Frenchman.

On the women's side, Mauresmo rolled into the semifinals with an easy 6-2 6-3 victory over Russian Dinara Safina, while second seed Justine Henin-Hardenne set up a semi-final showdown with Serbian Jelena Jankovic by battling past Lindsay Davenport 6-4 6-4 in a match between former champions.

Federer blasted 15 aces and had 42 winners but the 79th-ranked Gicquel produced a respectable showing by committing only 22 unforced errors, seven fewer than the Swiss.

In the quarter-finals, eight-times grand slam champion Federer will play either American James Blake or Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic.

Mauresmo, who will face third seed Maria Sharapova or France's Tatiana Golovin in the semifinals, broke Safina's serve all four times in the first set.

"It's good to be able to be in control, feel good on the court, and really get a good rhythm," Mauresmo said after the 62-minute affair. "Today I felt pretty good on the court."

Mauresmo motored in the second set, firing 10 winners while never losing serve.

"It was completely not my day today," said Safina, who repeatedly whacked her racket on the court in disgust.

In other matches, Russian Nikolay Davydenko completed his rain-delayed 6-1 5-7 6-3 6-0 fourth-round victory over British teenager Andy Murray, while 14th seed Tommy Haas edged former champion Marat Safin 4-6 6-3 2-6 6-2 7-6.

Davydenko needed only 36 minutes to whip Murray 6-0 during the one set played on Wednesday after rain interrupted their match a day earlier.

Seeking his first grand slam quarter-final appearance, Murray gift-wrapped the set by making 13 unforced errors and double-faulting three times in the opening game.

But Davydenko played extraordinarily consistent tennis, winning all of the big points.

"I never played against someone who's played a set as well as that," said Murray.

"I didn't help myself by serving three doubles in the first game.

"If someone plays like that, sometimes you just have to say, 'too good.' He played too good for me today."

- REUTERS