Roger Federer saved some energy for the rest of the Australian Open, while Kim Clijsters hobbled into the third round.
Fifth-seeded Mary Pierce, the 1995 Australian champion and a two-time finalist at last year’s majors, became the highest-seeded player ousted in the tournament when she lost 6-3, 7-5 to Iveta Benesova on Thursday.
Pierce, who turned 31 last Sunday and was playing in her 13th Australian Open, crashed into the net as she lunged to reach a drop shot on match point.
That came after she had one last reprieve.
After coming back from 5-0 down in the first set and wasting three set points in the second, Pierce got the benefit of a replay on match point when a baseline judge incorrectly called Benesova’s ball long instead of good.
Pierce made 41 unforced errors, against only 19 for her 22-year-old Czech rival, who wore a below-the-hip skirt.
The upset ended any chance of a third-round match between Pierce and Martina Hingis, a three-time champion making a comeback from three years in retirement. Hingis was playing Emma Laine of Finland later on Thursday in a second-round match.
Top-ranked Federer advanced with an emphatic 6-1, 6-4, 6-0 win over Florian Mayer, and finished his second-round match with 38 winners in one hour and 12 minutes.
”It’s so nice to get quick matches in the heat,” said Federer, whose next opponent is 30th-seeded Max Mirnyi. ”I thought I handled it well … I’m very happy with my performance.”
Clijsters, the United States Open champion, spent 10 minutes longer on Rod Laver Arena than Federer in her 6-4, 6-2 win over Chinese qualifier Yuan Meng.
Clijsters, bothered by hip and back soreness, overcame 48 unforced errors and five double faults to beat Yuan, who had heavy strapping on both thighs and produced only two clean winners in the match.
The second-seeded Clijsters needed treatment on her back and hip between sets and was not moving fluently, although she went to the net 14 times and won 12 of those points.
”I’m happy with the win, but my body doesn’t feel too good at the moment,” Clijsters said. ”Although I didn’t play my best tennis, not even close, I always felt like I could win.
”As long as [the hip] doesn’t get worse, I’ll keep fighting and see how I go.”
Clijsters next plays Italian Roberta Vinci, who beat number 27 Marion Bartoli 6-4, 3-6, 6-3.
Third-seeded Amelie Mauresmo advanced 7-6 (1), 6-2 over French compatriot Emilie Loit, while 2004 French Open winner Anastasia Myskina had a 7-6 (4), 0-6, 6-3 win over American Jamea Jackson.
Federer was so dominating that Mayer never had a game point after holding serve to pull within 4-5 in the second set.
Always a perfectionist, the normally stoic Federer did seem a little annoyed at his 18 unforced errors that accounted for one-third of Florian’s points. After smacking a forehand crosscourt winner for his third break of the final set, he allowed himself a little fist pump.
”If I keep on playing the way I am, not losing too much energy out on the court, maybe it’s going to pay back eventually,” said Federer, who has conceded only 12 games across two rounds.
The overmatched Mayer tried a little of everything, charging the net and flicking soft drops from the baseline, but nothing worked as temperatures reached 31 degrees Celsius.
He raised his racket to acknowledge cheers from the crowd after winning his first game — the sixth of the match. But he became increasingly frustrated, shaking his head and even looking to the sky for help. None was forthcoming.
Number five Nikolay Davydenko, a potential quarterfinal rival for Federer, advanced 4-6, 6-0, 6-3, 6-2 over American Kevin Kim and number six Guillermo Coria overcame Italy’s Federico Luzzi 7-6 (10), 6-4, 6-3.
In women’s matches, 17-year-old Michaella Krajicek defeated India’s Sania Mirza 6-3, 7-5 and Australia’s Samantha Stosur beat Ana Ivanovic by the same score.
Mirza become the first Indian woman to reach the third round of a major with her breakthrough run here last year. She improved on that at the US Open, where she reached the fourth round.
But this time it was Krajicek, a half-sister of 1996 Wimbledon champion Richard Krajicek, who made the third round of a major for the first time.
Lleyton Hewitt, a finalist here last year, was to renew a heated rivalry with Argentina’s Juan Ignacio Chela in the second round.
Hewitt’s centre-court encounter with Chela is a rematch of their controversial third-round meeting here last year. Hewitt won and Chela was fined for spitting in the Australian’s direction. — Sapa-AP