Justine Henin staged another memorable comeback Friday to advance in her first Grand Slam out of retirement, beating No. 27 Alisa Kleybanova 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 in the third round of the Australian Open.
Alona Bondarenko of Ukraine pumps her fist after securing a point Friday (Thursday night ET) on her way to a third-round, 6-2, 6-3 victory against Jelena Jankovic of Serbia.
Facing two break points at 1-3 in the second set, it seemed as if Henin's dramatic win over Olympic gold medalist and fifth-ranked Elena Dementieva on Wednesday had sapped too much energy. After all, it was only the seventh match for the seven-time Grand Slam winner since she returned from 20 months off the tour.
But Henin managed to hold that game, hitting the lines with her groundstrokes instead of just missing them, and in the next game converted her first break-point chance against Kleybanova. As soon Henin found her range, the match was as good as over.
"I kind of survived a little bit today," Henin said. "It's always good to win this kind of match because I came back from nowhere.
"It was so difficult for me after last match. Physically I suffered a little bit in the last two days, but finally I did it. I'm very happy that I have another chance to get better in the next round."
Former No. 1-ranked Andy Roddick was challenged all the way in a 6-7 (4-7), 6-4, 6-4, 7-6 (7-3) win over Feliciano Lopez. He next will play 2007 runner-up Fernando Gonzalez of Chile, who was backed by a noisy Chilean contingent in stifling conditions on Showcourt 2 as he beat Kazakhstan's Evgeny Korolev 6-7 (5-7), 6-3, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4.
Britain's Andy Murray had a 7-5, 6-1, 6-4 win over Florent Serra of France and will next face American John Isner, who fired 26 aces and hit 73 winners in a 6-1, 4-6, 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-5) victory over No. 12 Gael Monfils of France.
On paper, it was an upset, although 24-year-old Isner -- who was given the last seeding for the tournament after Frenchman Gilles Simon withdrew -- went into the match with a two wins and only one loss against Monfils.
The winner of the Murray-Isner match is likely to face defending champion Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals. Nadal had a night match Friday against Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany.
Roddick broke Lopez in the third game of the second set and the ninth of the third set, serving out at love both times.
"I felt like I was real close to getting on top of the match to kind of make it a little bit more comfortable," Roddick said, "just didn't quite get there."
"But the only thing that matters, you're just trying to get through, and that happened. So no complaints."
Henin, unranked and playing on a wild-card entry, had a momentary lapse in the deciding set when Kleybanova broke her serve, but otherwise dominated the last 10 games.
Only two nights earlier, Henin had to save set points to finish off Dementieva in a tiebreaker, drawing on the experience of losing in similar circumstances to Kim Clijsters after holding match points in the Brisbane International final on Jan. 9.
That was Henin's first tournament since she quit while holding the No. 1 ranking in May 2008. In what is shaping as the Belgian quarter, Henin now must beat Yanina Wickmayer to have a chance at a quarterfinal against Kim Clijsters.
Justine Henin of Belgium shows off her familiar, powerful, one-handed backhand during her 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 victory Friday against Alisa Kleybanova of Russia during the third round of the Australian Open in Melbourne. Henin, in the second event of her comeback from a 20-month retirement, was down a set and a break before rallying to win.
Wickmayer, who is ranked No. 16 but unseeded because she was under a suspension -- since overturned -- for breaching the World Anti-Doping Agency's "whereabouts rule" when direct entries closed for the Australian Open -- advanced 6-1, 6-7 (4-7), 6-3 over Sara Errani. She needed painkillers for back pain against Errani and said she'd need treatment before facing Henin.
Second-seeded Dinara Safina had an easier third-round match, advancing with a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Britain's Elena Baltacha in her first match on Rod Laver Arena since her lopsided loss to Serena Williams in last year's final.
Safina, a three-time Grand Slam finalist, will have a more difficult assignment next round against fellow Russian Maria Kirilenko, who beat Italian Roberta Vinci 7-5, 7-6 (7-4). Kirilenko had an upset win over 2008 champion Maria Sharapova in the opening round.
"I think Sharapova hits it harder than Safina, so I am prepared for sure," Kirilenko said.
Former No. 1-ranked Jelena Jankovic was upset 6-2, 6-3 by No. 31 Alona Bondarenko.
Clijsters, who inspired Henin's return to the tour by winning the U.S. Open last September in her third tournament back from retirement, was playing Nadia Petrova in a night match.
SOURCE: The Associated Press
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