Hingis Provides Her Own Hot Streak

Who would have thought Martina Hingis would last longer at the Australian Open than the trio of Mary Pierce and Venus and Serena Williams?

Even supremely confident Hingis said she didn’t expect anything when she emerged from the tennis mothballs to play her first Grand Slam since late 2002. Today, she reached the final 16 here, dismissing Pierce’s conqueror, Iveta Benesova of the Czech Republic, 6-4, 6-1, in the third round in 66 minutes.

Hingis plays Samantha Stosur of Australia or Sybille Bammer of Austria in the fourth round. That’s three rounds beyond Venus Williams, two better than Pierce and one more than Serena Williams.

“Coming into this tournament, I was like, ‘OK, tough first round, see if I survive that one first,’ ” Hingis said of her opener against former top-10 player Vera Zvonareva. “I’m just really happy and pleased being in the fourth round and having another opportunity at an event like this. Expectations just definitely grow. With every match I’m getting more confident.”

Said Benesova: “Well, it’s really amazing after three years, not playing a match, and she’s really mentally strong. She believes in her game. She knows what to do out there.”

Benesova, a 22-year-old left-hander, represented the first crisis point for Hingis, whose serve had not been broken in her first two matches. Benesova did it early, taking a 3-1 lead.

But Hingis broke back and steadily dismantled Benesova’s game, with an assist from the increasing heat.

At 4-4, Benesova double faulted three times, including break point, and Hingis went on to lose just one more game. Hingis did not double fault and had 12 unforced errors to Benesova’s 27.

“It was a pity that I lost the first set like this,” said Benesova, who felt dizzy from the heat on the changeover after the seventh game. “Then in the second set, well, she made me feel so uncomfortable because she’s a very clever, very smart player.”

Conditions quickly grew worse, with temperatures in excess of 100 degrees. Officials invoked the extreme heat rule in the early afternoon, and did not start any new matches on outside courts.

Later, the roof was closed on Rod Laver Arena and Vodafone Arena, but that was too late for 17-year-old Michaella Krajicek of the Netherlands, the half-sister of Richard Krajicek.

She had to stop because of heat exhaustion after losing the first set, 6-2, to No. 3 Amelie Mauresmo of France. Krajicek was treated with ice bags after the first set, and the trainers took her temperature, which was 101 degrees.

The youngster also felt nauseated and finally said: “I can’t play.”

“Each game and each point I was playing more, I was getting really tired,” Krajicek said. “And because of the heat, of course. I’m one of the youngest players here, so I still have to get used to everything.”

No one toiled longer than No. 12 Dominik Hrbaty of Slovakia and Igor Andreev of Russia. Because their match had started before the heat rule was invoked, they had to finish in the sweltering conditions on Margaret Court Arena, and Hrbaty won, 1-6, 6-4, 6-3, 2-6, 6-4, in 3 hours 31 minutes. Andreev said his body “lost power” in the second set.

The biggest upset on the men’s side came from Sebastien Grosjean of France, who beat No. 6 Guillermo Coria of Argentina, 6-2, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4.