Henman through to quarter-finals in Adelaide

Tim Henman powered into the quarter-finals of the AAPT Championship with a

6-1 6-4 win over controversial American Jeff Tarango in Adelaide.

The British number one, seeded second, continued his impressive build-up to the Australian Open following his 6-2 7-6 beating of Greg Rusedski in the previous round.

Henman coasted through the first set and although forced to stretch himself more in the second, he showed few signs of distress in the searing heat.

Henman, ranked 10 in the world, will now play Thomas Johansson in the last eight after the Swede beat Germany's Christian Vinck 7-5 6-3.

He has beaten Johansson in both of their previous two encounters, in Basel in 1998 and Seoul in 1996.

Henman said that despite the heat, the conditions had suited him.

"I thought it was a bit warmer than my first match but that's what you want really because it gets you used to the conditions," he added.

"When it is hot like this it makes conditions pretty fast and that suits me nicely."

Henman is feeling optimistic ahead of the Australian Open, where he is hoping to get beyond the fourth round at least.

"I feel that the fourth round of the Australian Open now needs to be improved and that's what I'm definitely setting out to do.

"The way my game has developed over the last 12 months, there's every opportunity to improve on that this year and I've got to keep maintaining the work on and off the court - and that's why I'm very optimistic."

On his defeated opponent, Henman added: "I've always enjoyed playing him and we've had some real battles and some really good matches.

"You don't want to underestimate him and that's why I think my intensity and my play were so high early on.

"At the back of your mind, you're entertained because he is a character but at the same time you know that you've got a job to do and you don't want to become distracted."