Rusedski dumps top seed Kuerten

Brazilian top seed Gustavo Kuerten crashed out of the Australian Open late on Thursday in the finest hour for rejuvenated Briton Greg Rusedski.

The 73rd-ranked Rusedski fought tenaciously from a match point down to wear down the Brazilian and win a gripping five-setter, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 2-6, 9-7 in two hours 44 minutes.

It was the fourth time in the Australian Open in the open era (post-1969) that a men's top seed has been dumped from the Australian Open in as early as the second round.

The other fallen top seeds are Ken Rosewall (1973), Mats Wilander (1989) and Alex Corretja (1999).

"It's great to get a win against the world's number one, I think he's the best player in the world at the moment and I'm more surprised than anybody to have played such a fantastic match against the No.1," said Rusedski, now coached by Australian Pat Cash.

"I'm enjoying my tennis again. When's the last time you saw me scamper for five sets around the court being corner drilled by the best groundstroke player in the world and be fresh enough to serve and volley the next game?"

Rusedski will now play German qualifier Lars Burgsmuller in the third round.

While Kuerten bombed out, Yevgeny Kafelnikov and Venus Williams had run-ins with officialdom earlier in the day and were forced to dig deep for victory while seeds Franco Squillari and Amy Frazier tumbled out.

Not everyone hit hurdles though.

Martina Hingis continued her march to a fourth Open title with a 40 minute 6-1, 6-0 demolition of Belgian Els Callens and former boyfriend Magnus Norman took a leaf out of her book, downing Frenchman Fabrice Santoro in straight sets.

And Lleyton Hewitt pumped himself up after his five-set first round marathon to beat a hamstring injury and Germany's Tommy Haas 7-5, 7-6 (7/5), 6-4.

Williams managed to get her outfit right but had to battle hard for a 6-3, 7-6 (7/3) win over compatriot Meghann Shaughnessy.

She also indulged in an uncharacteristic verbal altercation with the umpire over a disputed call in the 7th game of the first set.

The Wimbledon and US Open chmapion wore the same two-piece top that caused a stir during her first round appearance on Tuesday but a few strategically placed stitches ensured a more discreet amount of cleavage was on show.

She insisted she was happy with both her performance and her outfit.

"I felt relaxed, comfortable and just beautiful," she said. "I played a lot better than in the first round."

Kafelnikov, a runner-up here last year, fought back to beat German Nicolas Kiefer in five sets but he too fell foul of the officials, being officially warned for ball abuse in the fourth set.

"It was frustrating for me to lose the third set after having so many break points and the warning I got for ball abuse helped me settle down and in the fourth set I just let it go."

He eventually ran out a 6-2, 3-6, 3-6, 6-3, 6-0 winner in three hours seven minutes and will now play American Chris Woodruff.