Easy win for Federer in US Open

Roger Federer has breezed through a straight-sets victory over Andreas Beck at the US Open, saving his energy for big matches to come.

The No.2-seeded Federer needed only 1 hour and 41 minutes to dispatch his opponent and book a place in the third round against Paul-Henri Mathieu. He has lost only 21 games across six sets and two matches.

"It's the perfect start, sure. I played Monday; had two days off. I had another easy one physically today, and here I am in the third round feeling like I'm completely in the tournament," said Federer, a five-time US Open champion and the only man left in the field who has won it.

Novak Djokovic only had to work a little harder to progress, seeing off Philipp Petzchner 7-5, 6-3, 7-6 (6). Robin Soderling remained on course for a quarterfinal clash with Federer by cruising past Taylor Dent 6-2, 6-2, 6-4.

Two other outside chances at the title - Nikolay Davydenko and Marin Cilic - were surprise eliminations Thursday.

For No.6 Davydenko, the surprise lay in the ease of victory for his unseeded opponent, as Richard Gasquet swept to a 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 win.

"All he had to do was hit the ball back to me a few times and I make a mistake and he wins the point," the frustrated Davydenko said.

Cilic blew a two sets to one lead and offered little in the fifth set of oppressive heat, beaten 5-7, 7-6 (6), 3-6, 7-6 (3), 6-1 by Japan's Kei Nishikori. The match took a minute short of five hours. For the third straight day, tournament officials triggered their extreme-heat policy, allowing for more attention from trainers to help players deal with conditions.

"It's not easy to accept that you stayed on court for five hours, had chances and then you're done," said Cilic, a quarterfinalist at last year's US Open. "It was physically very tough. The conditions were really tough. It was hot and it was very humid and it wasn't easy to get the oxygen."

In the women's draw, top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki trounced Taiwan's Chang Kai-shen 6-0, 6-0.

"I'm pretty disappointed, but not embarrassed," Chang said. "I know it's in front of a lot of people and on TV and stuff. But things happen."

Jelena Jankovic and Vera Zvonareva also progressed, as did former champion Svetlana Kuznetsova, with the major casualty being No.9 Agnieszka Radwanska, who was beaten 2-6, 6-1, 6-4 by China's Peng Shuai.

Maria Sharapova also won through, beating Iveta Benesova 6-1, 6-2, and will next take on local outsider Beatrice Capra, who was a 7-5, 2-6, 6-3 winner over No.18 Aravane Rezai.

Sharapova knows all about the danger posed by unknown Americans at the US Open. Last year, the Russian was beaten by Melanie Oudin.

At this stage, the 14th-seeded Sharapova is clearly a different player than she was last year, when her loss to Oudin was, in many ways, as much a credit to the teenager's grit as to the Russian's still-recovering right shoulder.

This time, it's Capra who gets a shot at Sharapova, the 2006 US Open champion who also has a Wimbledon and Australian Open title.

"It will be an amazing experience," Capra said.

The 18-year-old got a call from the US Tennis Association a few weeks ago, inviting her to play in a playoff for a wild-card spot. She won it and suddenly found herself in the main draw of a tour-level event for the first time.

After wins over Karolina Sprem and Rezai, Capra faces her biggest test by far against Sharapova.

"I know she's just such a tough competitor," Capra said. "When I was younger, I used to always look up to her, and so it will be a really good match for me to see where I am compared to that kind of level."

A three-time winner at the majors, Sharapova is only 23, but can already see a trend developing. More and more, she's playing opponents who grew up with her poster on their wall.

"When they tell me they want to be just like me, not only is it a bit overwhelming and a bit of a shock, it's kind of strange," Sharapova said of her trips to tennis clinics to work with kids. "I mean, I'm certainly far from perfect. I have many things I'm not good at. I always say to them, 'You should want to be better than me or anyone else."'

- AP