Ana Falls As Seeds Cruise Through

Day four of the Australian Open went to plan for almost every seed today, excluding a disappointing Ana Ivanovic.

Australian's Casey Dellacqua and Sam Stosur both won in straight sets to advance to the third round to keep Australia's hopes alive in the women's draw. The Williams sisters, Caroline Wozniacki, Victoria Azarenka and Vera Zvonareva all advanced, but Ivanovic wasn't able to do the same.

I watched Ivanovic on the second day when she won in straight sets. However, it wasn't the most convincing victory of all time and there were definitely signs of weaknesses, especially on her serve. Argentina's Gisela Dulko took advantage of Ivanovic today and won in three sets to send the Serbian babe packing. Ivanovic is not the player she was 12 months ago and will have to work hard to get back inside that top ten.

Standout performances in the men's draw came from Lleyton Hewitt, Roger Federer, Jo-Wilfred Tsonga, Fernando Verdasco and that man again Nikolay Davydenko. All won in straight sets with relative ease. In stark contrast, Marcos Baghdatis came from behind to win in five sets against an underdone David Ferrer in typical Baghdatis fashion.

With Baghdatis and Hewitt both winning, it sets up an intriguing third round battle between the two on Saturday. The last time they met during an Australian Open tournament, Baghdatis defeated Hewitt in a gruelling five set match that didn't conclude until 4am. On current form, Hewitt looks the better player, highlighted by a fantastic fitness level. However, if Baghdatis can drag the match out, the Cypriot might be the one facing Roger Federer in the fourth round.

BTW, Liverpool were able to finally record a victory in 2010, downing Tottenham 2-0. Without stars Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres, Dutch import Dirk Kuyct stepped up to the plate and delivered scoring his sides two goals. However, if Liverpool coach, Rafa Benitez, wants to keep his job, these wins must become a more regular occurrence for a side that has had a pathetic season according to their usually high standards.