ESTORIL (Portugal), April 18: World number one Roger Federer breezed through irritating showers to shrug off Romania’s Victor Hanescu 6-3, 6-2 and reach the Estoril Open quarter-finals on Thursday.

With conditions at their worst, the top seed needed just 59 minutes to dispatch the world number 68 in the claycourt event.

Federer, playing this low-key event for the first time as he prepares for a new assault on the French Open, the only Grand Slam title to elude him, was watched by his new coaching brains trust headed by Spain’s Jose Higueras and Swiss Davis Cup coach Severin Luethi.

Federer is hoping to lift his first title of a troubled season having seen his start to 2008 overshadowed by a battle with glandular fever.

He has Higueras, who coached Michael Chang and Jim Courier to Roland Garros titles, on trial this week to see how the arrangement might work.

The world number one took an early lead in Thursday’s drizzle, advancing to 3-1 in the opening set at the Estadio Nacional.

Federer clinched the opening set in half an hour with a service winner, then showed he was hoping for a quick afternoon by breaking to start the second set.

The Swiss, who next faces either Joao Sousa or Federico Gil, both of Portugal, reached a comfortable 4-0 lead and moved into a winning position with three match points in the eighth game.

But Hanescu had other plans, saving all three and forcing the Swiss to fire his third ace on a fourth opportunity to get the job done.

In other second-round matches, Czech Jiri Vanek defeated German eighth seed Michael Berrer 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 while Denis Gremelmayr took a win for Germany over Russian Teimuraz Gabashvili 7-6 (8/6), 6-1.

Women’s second seed Maria Kirilenko reached the last eight with a defeat of Czech Petra Cetkovska 6-3, 6-2 while Ukranian Olga Savchuk put out Sweden’s seventh seed Sofia Arvidsson 6-2, 6-2.

Results (prefix number denotes seeding):

Men’s (second round):

1-Roger Federer (Switzerland) bt Victor Hanescu (Romania) 6-3, 6-2; Jiri Vanek (Czech Republic) bt 8-Michael Berrer (Germany) 6-3, 3-6, 7-5; Denis Gremelmayr (Germany) bt Teimuraz Gabashvili (Russia) 7-6 (8/6), 6-1; Frederico Gil (Portugal) leads Joao Sousa (Portugal) 7-6 (7/5), 0-1 (rain stopped play).

Women’s (second round):

2-Maria Kirilenko (Russia) bt Petra Cetkovska

(Czech Republic) 6-3, 6-2; Olga Savchuk (Ukraine) bt 7-Sofia Arvidsson (Sweden) 6-2, 6-2; Maret Ani (Estonia) bt Kristen Flipkens (Belgium) 6-0, 6-2; 5-Tathiana Garbin (Italy) bt Sandra Mamic (Croatia) 6-2, 6-2.

SERENA FACES SHARAPOVA

CHARLESTON (South Carolina): Serena Williams winced through a sprained ankle and a first-set wobble to beat Slovenia’s Katarina Srebotnik 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 and reach the Family Circle Cup quarter-finals on Thursday.

The fifth-seeded American won the last eight points to set up a clash with Russian number two seed Maria Sharapova, who defeated Ukrainian Tatiana Perebiynis 7-5, 6-2.

Serena blasted 11 aces and converted four of nine break-point opportunities in the two-hour, 13-minute match against 12th-seeded Srebotnik.

Top seed and holder Jelena Jankovic of Serbia made quick work of Russian Anastasia Rodionova, winning their third-round match 6-0, 6-2 in 52 minutes.Russia’s fourth-seeded Elena Dementieva and ninth seed Vera Zvonareva of Russia, seventh-seeded Patty Schnyder of Switzerland, 10th seed Agnes Szavay of Hungary and unseeded Alize Cornet of France also advanced to the last eight.

Sharapova won her first career claycourt title on Sunday by beating Dominika Cibulkova at Amelia Island.

The Russian, who reached the quarter-finals despite double-faulting to give Perebiynis a set point in the first set, has a 2-4 win-loss record against Serena.

With the Serena and Sharapova matches on the stadium court, Jankovic was relegated to the outer Althea Gibson Club Court.

Results (third round):

7-Patty Schnyder (Switzerland) bt 11-Agnieszka Radwanska (Poland) 6-3, 6-2; 2-Maria Sharapova (Russia) bt Tatiana Perebiynis (Ukraine) 7-5, 6-2; 4-Elena Dementieva (Russia) bt 13-Victoria Azarenka (Belarus) 6-4, 7-5; 5-Serena Williams (US) bt 12-Katarina Srebotnik (Slovenia) 4-6, 6-4, 6-3; 1-Jelena Jankovic (Serbia) bt Anastasia Rodionova (Russia) 6-0, 6-2; Alize Cornet (France) bt Sorana Cirstea (Romania) 6-1, 7-5; 9-Vera Zvonareva (Russia) bt 6-Marion Bartoli (France) 6-4, 4-6, 6-1; 10-Agnes Szavay (Hungary) bt 8-Dinara Safina (Russia) 6-2, 7-5.

BLAKE IN QUARTERS

HOUSTON (Texas): Top-seeded James Blake took down another teenaged opponent on Thursday to book his berth in the quarter-finals of the 436,000-dollar US Clay Court Championships.

Blake cruised to a straight-sets victory over 15-year-old qualifier Ryan Harrison 6-3, 6-2.The 28-year-old Blake, who is seeking his first title since the Pilot Pen in New Haven last August, also defeated 18-year-old Kei Nishikori of Japan on Wednesday.

Blake overcame his struggles on clay courts to advance to the quarter-finals. The world No.8, who improved to 33-34 on this surface, will face fifth-seeded Argentinian Agustin Calleri.

On Tuesday, Harrison became the third-youngest player in 18 years to win an ATP match, defeating Pablo Cuevas of Uruguay.

Ranked 1,277 in the world, the Texas resident joined Richard Gasquet of France and current world No.2 Rafael Nadal of Spain as the only 15-year-olds to win a match since 1990.

Calleri posted a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Chilean Paul Capdeville earlier in the day. Calleri converted 4-of-15 break-point chances.

In other action, unseeded American Wayne Odesnik upset sixth-seeded Dudi Sela of Israel 6-3, 7-5.

Results (second round):

1-James Blake (US) bt Ryan Harrison (US) 6-3, 6-2; 5-Agustin Calleri (Argentina) bt Paul Capdeville (Chile) 6-2, 6-1 Sergio Roitman (Argentina) bt Igor Kunitsyn (Russia) 6-3, 7-6(3); Marcos Daniel (Brazil) bt Nicolas Massu (Chile) 7-6(3), 6-2; 7-Marcel Granollers (Spain) bt Peter Luczak (Australia) 6-3, 6-2; Wayne Odesnik (US) bt 6-Dudi Sela (Israel) 6-3, 7-5.—Agencies