Roddick, Sharapova advance in Australia
(AP)
Updated: 2006-01-20 14:57

Baghdatis works the ball and the crowd. His rowdy fans at Melbourne Park helped him through and then circled Rod Laver Arena while chanting during Roddick's match — giving the American a taste of what to expect in the next round.

Third-seeded Lleyton Hewitt was upset 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (8), 6-2 by Argentine Juan Ignacio Chela on Thursday night, so the draw has opened up for Roddick and top-ranked Roger Federer, who is on the other half.

"It's pointless talking about playing Roger now. I have to get there first," Roddick said.

No. 5 Nikolay Davydenko and No. 6 Guillermo Coria are the only survivors among the top 10 in Federer's half of the draw.

Federer has lost only 12 games in six sets spanning two rounds.

His Swiss compatriot, former women's No. 1 Martina Hingis, continued her impressive comeback with a 6-1, 6-1 win over Finland's Emma Laine on Thursday. Hingis left the tour three years ago because of foot, heel and ankle injuries.

Losses by No. 5 Mary Pierce and No. 21 Ava Ivanovic mean that Hingis has no seeded players in her part of the draw until the quarterfinals, when she could face second-seeded Kim Clijsters.

Clijsters sounded pessimistic about finishing the tournament due to hip and back soreness. She overcame 48 unforced errors to beat Yuan Meng 6-4, 6-2.