Kuznetsova, Federer in scorching form

Svetlana Kuznetsova shrugged off the doping row clouding her Australian Open campaign to reach the third round yesterday and was swiftly joined by men's champion Roger Federer and Serena Williams.

Reigning US Open champion and fifth seed in Melbourne, Kuznetsova crushed Marion Bartoli of France 6-2 6-0 in a mere 40 minutes - a performance that matched the scorching hot Melbourne Park temperatures.

Seventh seed Williams, the 2003 champion, needed just one game more and eight minutes longer to thrash Madagascar's Dally Randriantefy 6-3 6-0 while Federer, Andre Agassi and last year's runner-up Marat Safin showed they could keep pace with the top women with quickfire wins.

But Wimbledon champion and Kuznetsova's compatriot Maria Sharapova struggled harder before the fourth seed overcame unseeded American Lindsay Lee-Waters 4-6 6-0 6-3.

Temperatures at Melbourne Park edged towards 35°C and second seed Amelie Mauresmo took a welcome break at the end of the second set of her match against teenager Dinara Safina, Marat Safin's little sister.

Mauresmo had got off to a slow start but returned refreshed after the break - allowed under the tournament's heat policy - to beat a wilting Safina 2-6 6-1 6-0.

The temperature had cooled by the time Federer took to Rod Laver Arena and the world number one turned in a hugely entertaining match, peppering Japanese qualifier Takao Suzuki with audacious passing shots on his way to a 6-3 6-4 6-4 win.

But most of the attention on day three was fixed firmly on Kuznetsova after a Belgian government minister said she had tested positive for ephedrine at a charity tournament in Charleroi last month.

Kuznetsova seemed unfazed by all the attention and happily signed autographs after her resounding win.

"I feel like the star here," she said of all the attention. "I don't feel like I did something wrong. I just try to take it out of my mind because I need to play my game, this is my first priority," Kuznetsova said.

Russian women had a phenomenal year in 2004, sweeping the last three grand slam singles titles and taking over the game from Belgians Justine Henin-Hardenne and Kim Clijsters, last year's Australian finalists who are absent this year with injuries.

That Russian success has been mirrored in Melbourne, where 14 women reached the second round.

Kuznetsova and Sharapova were soon joined in the third round by unseeded Vera Douchevina and Evgenia Linetskaya. Douchevina, 18, upset ninth seed and compatriot Vera Zvonareva 6-3 6-3, while Linetskaya hammered Slovak Martina Sucha 6-0 6-2.

Fourth seed Safin, beaten Melbourne finalist in 2004 and 2002, stood up for the Russian men with a no-nonsense 6-4 6-1 6-3 defeat of Czech Bohdan Ulihrach to reach the third round.

Williams's dazzling tennis matched her fluorescent lime green and white outfit and she hammered six aces past Randriantefy.

British tennis also enjoyed a rare bright moment when unseeded Elena Baltacha became the first British woman to reach the third round of the Open since Clare Wood in 1991. Baltacha beat Stephanie Cohen-Aloro of France 2-6 6-3 6-1, her unexpected success forcing her to change her plane booking home for the fifth time.

At the other end of the spectrum, Agassi thrashed Rainer Schuettler 6-3 6-1 6-0 - allowing Schuettler one game fewer than when he beat the German for his fourth Australian title in 2003.