Brits stay cool in the heat

Henman had his serve broken once en route to victory

Britain's Tim Henman and Greg Rusedski have both progressed into the third round of the Masters Series in Cincinnati.

Henman's straight-sets victory over Hyung-Taik Lee was a little easier than Rusedski's match - Britain's number two had to fight through two tie-breaks to beat Argentine Gaston Gaudio.

Henman beat his South Korean opponent 6-3 6-3 and was always in control despite having his serve broken in the second set.

After the match, Henman was slightly concerned with his back strain but was more worried with the heat.

Rusedski had to work hard for his win

"You've got to make sure you're prepared and hydrated. If you're not, you're in big trouble," he said.

"I feel the hot conditions do favour my game, from a tennis point of view and a physical point of view, because I do feel in good shape."

Henman achieved the first break of serve in the fifth game of the opening set with a mixture of chipping and charging and cross-court shots.

The Korean suffered his second break when a backhand pass from Henman earned him the first set 6-3.

Henman survived a break point in the first game of the second set and then broke Lee's serve to take a 2-0 lead.

After holding his serve, Henman again used the chip and charge to good effect to complete a second break and take a 4-0 lead.

Joy for top seed

Lee hit back with his first break. The next two games went to serve and Henman wobbled slightly as he faced two break points when serving for the match.

The Briton's serve did not let him down as he closed out the set and the match for an easy win - he will next play German Nicolas Kiefer, who beat American Todd Martin 6-1 4-6 6-2.

Rusedski's match with Gaudio was a tremendous battle - both players had chances to break in the first set but it was the Briton who stayed calm to take the tie-break 7/2.

The second set was just as tense but Rusedski's serve often helped him get out of trouble and the set was again decided in a tie-break - he won it 7/1.

Russia's Yevgeny Kafelnikov also moved into the third round with a 6-1 6-4 defeat of Frenchman Fabrice Santoro.

Top seed Gustavo Kuerten of Brazil won a marathon match with Tommy Haas.

The Brazilian star needed almost two hours to overcome the German 7-6 (7/4) 7-6 (10/8).

Other winners were America's Jan-Michael Gambill, who beat Jiri Novak of the Czech Republic 7-6 (7/2) 6-2, and Max Mirnyi of Belarus who overcame Andrei Pavel 6-1 6-1.