Everywhere Stosur turns, she's eliminated by Hingis

MELBOURNE, Australia - Samantha Stosur has had enough of Martina Hingis at the Australian Open.

Australia's Stosur was the last local hope in singles - male or female - at the year's first Grand Slam tournament. But she found Hingis, on a comeback from a three-year retirement, waiting in the fourth round and lost 6-1, 7-6 (8).

On Friday, Hingis was again in her path, this time in the mixed doubles semifinals. Stosur, who won the mixed title last year with compatriot Scott Draper - teamed with fellow Aussie Paul Hanley. But the fifth-seeded pair lost to Hingis and Mahesh Bhupathi 6-3, 6-3.

Earlier Friday, Stosur teamed with American Lisa Raymond in the women's doubles final, and also came up short. Stosur and Raymond - the top seeds and reigning U.S. Open women's doubles champions - led by a set and a break and had two match points before losing to 12th-seeded Chinese pair of Yan Zi and Zheng Jie 2-6 7-6 (7), 6-3.

For Raymond and Stosur, the defeat also meant they missed out on taking over as the No. 1 and No. 2-ranked doubles players, respectively.

OUTSIDE BET: Marcos Baghdatis' odds of winning the Australian Open final have decreased as his confidence increases. Since opening at 500-to-1, Baghdatis' odds have shrunk to 125-1 after the first three rounds, 34-1 after beating No. 2 seed Andy Roddick in the fourth round, 8-1 after his quarterfinal win against Ivan Ljubicic and 4-1 after making the final.

TWO GREATS MEET: It was a meeting of the tennis greats - Rod Laver and Roger Federer. It happened Friday at the Australian Open, when the 67-year-old Laver, back in Australia to make trophy presentations, had his first direct meeting with Federer.

"It's nice to be able to meet Roger and see how his career is progressing," Laver said outside the arena that bears his name.

"I feel proud the way he's playing. It's nice to see the talent he has and the way he can play so well under pressure."

Laver is the only player to win the Grand Slam twice, winning all four majors in 1962 and in 1969. But Laver said Federer, who has won six Grand Slams, could be even better.

"Roger's got a great opportunity," said Laver.

"He's got a long way to go. He's in his prime. That's the one thing people should remember."

Laver arrived in Melbourne on Thursday from his home in Carlsbad, California.