FOUR-TIME French Open champion Rafael Nadal is braced for a tough battle as he faces Lleyton Hewitt at Roland Garros today.

Second seed Dinara Safina retired from her fourth-round match with Maria Kirilenko today due to injury.

Justine Henin today fought back from a set down to keep her Australian Open title quest going just a month after returning from retirement.

Former champion Maria Sharapova was the first big name to fall at the Australian Open after she lost a marathon match with Maria Kirilenko.

Venus Williams insisted her bid for a first Australian Open title remained on track despite a shaky second-round win against Frenchwoman Camille Pin.

Svetlana Kuznetsova proved that she is far from a false number two seed at the Australian Open, dismissing France’s Nathalie Dechy in straight sets today – and sounding a warning to her rivals.

AMELIE MAURESMO barely broke sweat in cruising past Vera Dushevina to secure a place in the quarter-finals of the Dubai Tennis Championships yesterday.

Serena Williams strolled to a 6-2 6-2 victory over Columbia’s Catalina Castano in the second round of the US Open in her bid to capture a second Grand Slam this year.

Serena Williams was greeted with jeers and whistles but then eased into the fourth round of the French Open with a 6-0 6-4 victory over Croatia’s Silvija Talaja.