Two-time Grand Slam champion Amelie Mauresmo was upset in the third round of the French Open on Saturday, losing to Lucie Safarova 6-3, 7-6 (3).

The fifth-seeded Mauresmo, who won Wimbledon and the Australian Open in 2006, also lost to Safarova while trying to defend her title at Melbourne in January.

“I was fighting for each point,” said Safarova, seeded 25th in Paris. “I never give up.”

Mauresmo led 3-0 in each set. But she double-faulted for the eighth time to fall behind 2-0 in the tiebreaker, and a long backhand gave Safarova three match points.

Safarova won when Mauresmo returned her serve into the net.

At 4-3 in the first set, tournament doctor Bernard Montalvan came on center court to treat Mauresmo, who then left for several minutes to take a medical break. When she returned, the top of her right thigh was wrapped.
Safarova lost in the first round at Roland Garros in 2005 and 2006. Mauresmo reached the quarterfinals in 2003 and 2004 and lost in the fourth round last year.

Sharapova wins
Maria Sharapova reach-ed the fourth round for the fourth time in her career, coming back from 1-4 down in the second set to beat Alla Kudryavtseva 6-1, 6-4 despite a bothersome right shoulder.

The second-seeded Russian needed only 28 minutes to win the first set, breaking her opponent three times. But Sharapova was broken three consecutive times in the second set, before winning five straight games.
“I was making a lot of unforced errors,” Sharapova said.

“Not a lot of people are going to let me get away with that. It’s a good reminder for the future not to let that happen again.”

Next up, Schnyder
Sharapova, who lost in the fourth round last year and reached the quarterfinals at Roland Garros in 2004 and 2005, next faces No 14 Patty Schynder of Switzerland - and could also meet Safarova in the quarterfinals.
Schnyder beat Karin Knapp of Italy 6-1, 4-6, 7-5.

Sharapova, who has 15 career titles and lost to Serena Williams in the final of the Australian Open, has yet to win a title this year.

Earlier in the tournament, she spoke of still feeling soreness from a shoulder injury that caused her to miss about two months of action. Against Kudryavtseva, Sharapova would stretch or flex her right shoulder between points.
“Like I said, I can’t expect a lot from my shoulder this week,” Sharapova said. “At times I still feel it during the match.”

No 3 Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia, a finalist last year, beat Dominika Cibulkova of Slovakia 6-2, 6-3.
Also, No 7 Ana Ivanovic of Serbia advanced to the fourth round after beating qualifier Ioana Raluca Olaru of Romania 6-2, 6-0.

“I didn’t feel as comfortable out there as the other two matches,” said Ivanovic, a quarterfinalist at Roland Garros in 2005. “My serve was not working as well.”

Hantuchova beaten
Spain's Anabel Medina Garrigues edged a three-hour battle against Slovakian 12th seed Daniela Hantuchova, winning 4-6, 7-6, 7-5 to reach the fourth.

On the warmest day of the championships so far, the 24-year-old from Valencia wore down the former world number five with some gritty tennis.

Hantuchova saved one match point at 4-5 in the deciding set with a brave drive volley, but there was no escape two games later when Garrigues got a second chance.

Garrigues, who has matched her best run at a Grand Slam, will face Israel's Shahar Peer in the last 16 after she beat Katarina Srebotnik, also in three sets.

Baghdatis through
Marcos Baghdatis was given an easy ride into the men’s fourth round when his Czech opponent Jan Hajek was forced to quit with a shoulder injury.

The Cypriot 16th seed, beaten by Roger Federer in the 2006 Australian Open final, was leading 6-2, 6-2 when Hajek conceded the match.

Baghdatis, who recently returned to Cyprus after living in Paris from the age of 13, had already beaten his previous best performance here by reaching the third round.

He will face either Paul-Henri Mathieu of France or Russia's Igor Andreev in the last 16.