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Marcos Baghdatis failed to repeat his heroics of last year when he was beaten 7-6 6-2 2-6 6-0 by Frenchman Gael Monfils in the second round of the Australian Open on Wednesday.
The 11th-seeded Cypriot, whose fairytale run to the final in 2006 ended in defeat at the hands of Roger Federer, found the power of the gangling 20-year-old too much to handle and went down in two hours and 37 minutes on Rod Laver Arena.
Monfils had surged into a two-set lead, but looked to be struggling with an injured foot as Baghdatis raised hopes of a revival by winning the third.
But the Frenchman's injury appeared to vanish as quickly as it had arrived and he marched through the last set to reach the third round for the first time in three attempts.
Monfils now faces another 20-year-old Frenchman, 18th seed Richard Gasquet, for a place in the last 16.
Meanwhile, Travelling down distinctly different roads on Wednesday, Andy Roddick and Marat Safin headed for an explosive third-round collision.
The American sixth seed came out firing against Frenchman Marc Gicquel and accelerated to a 6-3, 7-6, 6-4 win.
Safin, champion in 2005, again chose a more winding route.
He made things difficult for himself as he was stretched to five sets for a second successive match before steering past Israeli qualifier Dudi Sela 6-3, 5-7, 4-6, 7-6, 6-0.
The Russian has now won 26 of 37 five-set matches in his career but cannot afford such lapses against a man who owns the fastest serve in the game.
"We're both better than a third round match-up against each other but that's the way it shakes out," said Roddick.
"We both have to deal with it. I'm sure he's not thrilled about it either."
Champions Roger Federer and Amelie Mauresmo, waltzing around court with effortless ease, put tennis back under the spotlight at Melbourne Park after the opening days' troubles.
On-court action during the first two days of the Grand Slam were overshadowed by brawling fans and the sweltering weather conditions.
On Wednesday, Federer set the agenda as his pursuit of a 10th Grand Slam title gathered pace with a 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 win over Swedish doubles exponent Jonas Bjorkman.
Mauresmo enjoyed an even more one-sided 6-2, 6-2 success against Russian teenager Olga Poutchkova.
Federer swatted the ball away to seal victory in 95 minutes and extend his perfect record to 5-0 against a player who has never managed to win a set off the Swiss maestro.
Up next for Federer is 25th seed and U.S. Open semi-finalist Mikhail Youzhny.
TOP PRIORITY
While Federer barely broke sweat, WTA chairman Larry Scott said the tournament's extreme heat policy needed a review after Tuesday's sizzling temperatures caused distress to competitors.
"Player health and wellbeing is our top priority and I was very concerned about the conditions yesterday and the potential risks to our players," Scott told reporters after women's top seed Maria Sharapova visibly struggled to last the distance during her first-round match.
"What happened yesterday is going to cause us to take another look at the heat policy."
Federer added: "Going out on the court, it gets so hot like you can't believe.
"It's not only the heat from the sun, but especially from underneath. This is what's really killing the players. The feet are just on fire."
Twice former champion Serena Williams sputtered and then powered her way to 7-6, 6-2 win.
With fifth seed Nadia Petrova up next for the American, she will not want her mind to go wandering as it did on Wednesday.
EQUALLY EMPHATIC
Russians Svetlana Kuznetsova and Petrova seemed to be in a hurry to get out of the humid conditions after both had ended up on the casualty list at last week's Sydney International.
Third seed Kuznetsova romped past Australian wildcard Monique Adamczak 6-2, 6-1 and number five Petrova was equally emphatic in her 6-1, 6-2 win over Argentine Gisela Dulko. Seventh seed Elena Dementieva also progressed.
They were joined in the third round by in-form Serbian 11th seed Jelena Jankovic, a 6-2, 6-2 winner over Virginia Ruano Pascual of Spain.
With Tuesday's draining conditions having caused the suspension of many matches, seeds Patty Schnyder, Dinara Safina and Daniela Hantuchova were all relieved to win their delayed first-round matches in straight sets.
Serbian 14th seed Novak Djokovic's run towards a possible fourth-round showdown with Federer gathered momentum when he hurtled past Spaniard Feliciano Lopez 6-2, 7-5, 6-1.
Former French Open champion Juan Carlos Ferrero's miserable run at the slams continued when he was beaten by Thai Danai Udomchoke.
Italian 14th seed Francesca Schiavone and France's Marion Bartoli, 18th, were the most notable women to exit the tournament on the third day.
