Steering a course through the opening rounds here is infinitely more difficult than at any other of the grand slams, with the demanding New York crowds at their most noisy and least attentive, and with the programme disjointed by night matches on three courts.
Tim Henman, having survived an upset stomach and a tenacious first-round opponent, yesterday returned after a welcome two-day break with the look of a man determined to leave as swiftly as possible.
As so often, having established initial dominance, he allowed his concentration to wander, and instead of winning in straight sets he allowed Brazil's Fernando Meligeni back into the match before winning 6-3 6-4 3-6 6-4 in a little less than two hours.
So far it has taken Henman more than six hours to put away one man, Jan Vacek of the Czech Republic, who had previously won only one match on the Tour, and another, Meligeni, who in 10 years of trying, has managed just four wins here.
Not exactly encouraging for Henman, although destiny was always leading him towards a third-round encounter with Belgium's Xavier Malisse, currently coached - but only just - by Henman's former long-time mentor, David Felgate. The coach was so incensed with Malisse's attitude during his first-round win over Fabrice Santoro of France (6-0, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2) that he walked out on his player's match.
Henman imposed himself with grim determination in the opening two sets against Meligeni but then played an extremely shoddy service game at the start of the third which cost him both the set and much needlessly-expended energy.
Henman believes new coach Larry Stefanki has been able to offer him fresh tactical and technical advice. "I like what he says, and I hope he is beginning to like what he sees." This is debatable.
Chile's Marcelo Rios briefly rose to number one in 1998. But he was renowned for his lack of charm. A series of injuries and operations, marriage and the birth of his daughter, appears to have ameliorated his brittle persona, and Rios was positively garrulous after defeating Romania's Andrei Pavel in straight sets.
Rios, now ranked number 56, said: "I was one of the fastest guys on the Tour, but I've lost a little of that. I'm working hard to win tournaments again, but having my daughter is better that winning any tournament." And he smiled.
Marat Safin, who so comprehensively defeated Pete Sampras in last year's final, overcame Croatia's Ivan Ljubicic 7-6 6-7 7-6 7-6 despite receiving treatment to his left leg, while Pat Rafter reached the last 32 under the night skies with a 7-5 6-2 6-1 victory over Christophe Rochus of Belgium.
Rafter, US Open champion in 1997 and 1998, acutely dislikes night matches, when his kick serve loses much of its venom. Rochus took an initial advantage, but fell away sharply after leading 5-2 in the first set.
Details in SPORTS ROUND-UP
