Hingis looking strong

As Kim Clijsters battled a back injury and Mary Pierce strutted out, so the bottom half of the women’s singles opened up for Martina Hingis at the Australian Open.

It stills seems implausible that wild-card entry Hingis will add to her three Australian titles this fortnight.

But equally she has shown such impressive form in the opening two rounds that her grand slam comeback should last into the second week.

Whether pre-tournament joint favourite Clijsters makes it so far remains hard to predict. Fitness should be the deciding factor.

She laboured to a 6-4 6-2 victory over China’s Meng Yuan in the second round and later revealed how a back injury was threatening her campaign.

The Belgian admitted she was “not doing so great” with the injury, although a hip problem she began the week with was not causing the same discomfort.

Clijsters could yet be forced to withdraw before her third-round tie against Italian Roberta Vinci, particularly if the back injury worsens, although she is optimistic that will not be necessary.

“Every day I hope it improves,” said the second seed.

“But I’m waiting every day and see how it feels. So I can’t tell you yet.

“I’m not someone who’s going to give up and if I say, no, it hurts tomorrow, I’m not going to hit. I’m going to try. At least I’m going to try out there and see.”

Hingis is going out and destroying opponents, with Finland’s Emma Laine crushed 6-1 6-1 in 54 minutes today.

The identity of her next opponent will have caught the 25-year-old Swiss by surprise, however.

She would have expected to face fifth seed Pierce, but Czech player Iveta Benesova sprung an upset to rival Venus Williams’ first-round defeat by winning that contest 6-3 7-5.

The world number 42 will be contesting her first third-round singles match at a grand slam, at the 15th attempt, and Hingis would doubtless rather face her than the unpredictable and hard-hitting Frenchwoman Pierce, champion at Melbourne Park in 1995 and at the French Open five years later.

There could be a quarter-final between Hingis and Clijsters on the cards, with Pierce left to lament her sub-par showing and the missed chance to face the returning six-time grand slam winner.

“What can I say? I think we all have a bad day sometimes and it wasn’t my best day today,” said Pierce, a finalist last year at the US Open and French Open.

“I did my best, tried to get into the match. I felt confident in the second set when I went ahead.

“I thought I was going to win the second set, then felt pretty confident if I did that I would win the match in the third set. I’m a bit surprised that didn’t happen.

“I tried my best, but it definitely wasn’t a very good match on my part.”

Clijsters, Hingis and Russian 12th seed Anastasia Myskina are the only players in the bottom half with a grand slam title to their name, but third-seeded Frenchwoman Amelie Mauresmo is also lurking and considered long overdue a major.

She came through an all-French second-round battle against Emilie Loit, 7-6 (7/1) 6-2.

Myskina struggled against American Jamea Jackson but survived, winning 7-6 (7/4) 0-6 6-3, while Swiss seventh seed Patty Schnyder triumphed 6-1 7-6 (11/9) against Shinobu Asagoe of Japan.

Michaella Krajicek, the 17-year-old sister of former Wimbledon champion Richard, ousted 32nd seed Sania Mirza of India, winning 6-3 7-5 to set up a meeting with Mauresmo.

But another sibling of a grand slam winner bowed out.

Dinara Safina is the younger sister of Russian Marat Safin, last year’s men’s champion in Australia, and despite being 19th seed this fortnight was convincingly beaten 6-4 6-0 by Sweden’s Sofia Arvidsson.