Another top seed bites the dust

NEW YORK // The title contenders Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic both advanced to the third round of the US Open, while the big upset of the day was again reserved for the women's draw. Federer, in his first grand slam tournament since being dethroned from his long-held No. 1 ranking, swept past Brazil's Thiago Alves 6-3, 7-5, 6-4, while Djokovic had to work a touch harder in dispatching the American Robert Kendrick 7-6 (8), 6-4, 6-4. The major casualty of the day was women's No. 3 seed and the former champion Svetlana Kuznetsova, who was beaten 6-3, 6-7 (1), 6-3 by the Slovenian No. 28 seed Katarina Srebotnik. Federer is down to his last chance to win a major this year, part of a tough season that saw him lose his No. 1 ranking to rival Rafael Nadal. Although they could meet in this year's final, Federer has not tracked his nemesis through the tournament and did not watch Nadal wrap up his match on Thursday night in straight sets. "I schedule my life around my life, not his," Federer said, smiling. "I was expecting five sets. I was there for four and five, but he wasn't there anymore." Elsewhere in the men's draw, Russian fifth-seed Nikolay Davydenko beat the Argentine Agustin Calleri 6-4, 6-4, 7-6 (2) and eighth-seeded Andy Murray rallied from a set and a break down to beat Latvia's most successful tennis player Ernests Gulbis 3-6, 7-5, 6-2, 7-5 in a match that finished at 1.30am local time. All the men's seeds in action yesterday won, leaving the women's third round matches to provide the intrigue. Victoria Azarenka, the No. 14 seed from Belarus, was beaten 6-4, 6-4 by inform Danish No. 21 Caroline Wozniacki, while the veteran American Lindsay Davenport, seeded 23, was also beaten by the French No. 12 Marion Bartoli, 6-1, 7-6 (3). A day after top ranked Ana Ivanovic lost to Julie Coin, ranked a lowly 188th in the world, Kutznetsova became the latest title fancy to be knocked out. Kuznetsova, who won the Open in 2004 and was runner-up last year, had trouble fending off Srebotnik's frequent charges to the net. Srebotnik fell to her knees when Kuznetsova's last shot sailed over the baseline. After beating Serena Williams in the French Open this year, Srebotnik had another reason to celebrate, having gone further than ever before at Flushing Meadows. Second-seed Jelena Jankovic won another close one, playing 28 points in the last game to finish off China's Zheng Jie 7-5, 7-5. Jankovic came out full of energy, showing no ill effects of a bad left leg that cramped after she played on Wednesday and even displaying her trademark 'splits' when reaching for groundstrokes. "As long as I'm doing the splits, that means I'm healthy," Jankovic said. "When I'm not doing the splits, you know there's something wrong. "I'm not too sure about my body if I go into a split, who knows if I'll come back up?" she said. Jankovic is trying to reach her first grand slam final. With Justine Henin retired, Maria Sharapova hurt, Ivanovic out and the Williams sisters in the opposite half of the draw, this seems to be her best chance. She needed more than two hours to beat the 37th-ranked Zheng, two days after playing for nearly three hours in the second round. "I wish I didn't have any drama in my matches. I wish I would win nice and in a simple way," she said. "Who likes drama? Do you know anybody that likes to get involved into tight matches?" Jankovic is one of six women who still have a chance to be ranked No. 1 after the Open, with Ivanovic among them despite her loss. Russian No. 5 seed Elena Dementieva beat England's Anne Keothavong 6-3, 6-4.

*AP