Brief bumbling only flaw in Sharapova's victory over Jankovic

Venus Williams got off to a slow start before beating Shikha Uberoi.
NEW YORK (AP) -- Maria Sharapova zinged shots so sharply against Jelena Jankovic, many fans at Louis Armstrong Stadium left their seats early in hopes of finding a more competitive match.
They missed seeing things get kind of interesting at the U.S. Open.
After breezing through the first seven games Thursday, Sharapova started bumbling. Soon after that, despite winning a 27-stroke point in the tie-breaker, the Wimbledon champion found herself again in a decisive third set.
But then, a bad omen for Jankovic: For some reason, her name began flickering on the scoreboard lights.
Tilt
And so did her hopes of an upset, especially when she needed treatment for a recurring left hip strain. Sharapova ramped up and won 15 straight points in winning 6-0, 6-7 (5), 6-1.
"I felt that I could hit any shot from anywhere on the court," the Russian teen said. "That's a good feeling to have when you're in the third set."
Most of the top players struggled a bit.
Venus Williams got off to a slow start before beating Shikha Uberoi 7-5, 6-1, and defending Open champion Justine Henin-Hardenne defeated Israeli qualifier Tzipi Obziler 6-2, 5-7, 6-2.
Andre Agassi took control after an early stagger and led 7-5, 2-6, 6-2, 1-0 when Florian Mayer quit with a left hamstring injury.
Playing in his 19th straight Open, the 34-year-old Agassi outlasted his 20-year-old opponent.
"I just don't want to play old. That's what I'm concerned about out there," Agassi said. "I feel like if I can still play my tennis, then I'm proud of that."
Not so fortunate
The reigning French Open champions weren't so fortunate, as No. 4 Anastasia Myskina and No. 9 Gaston Gaudio both lost. So did U.S. Olympic semifinalists Mardy Fish and Taylor Dent.
In perhaps the most entertaining match of the day -- and night -- Olympic double gold medalist Nicolas Massu lost to Sargis Sargian 6-7 (6), 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (6), 6-4. At 5 hours, 9 minutes, it was the second-longest match by time in Open history -- Stefan Edberg beat Michael Chang in a 1992 semifinal that lasted 17 minutes more.
Massu spiced up his match by cracking his racket on a fence and later slamming it on a fence. Chair umpire Carlos Ramos docked Massu a point for his first outburst and penalized him a game in the final set for the tantrum.
"I played for five hours, I fight a lot, and this guy comes here, gives me two or three warnings. I accept the first two warnings. If I have to pay something, I accept it. But the third is unbelievable," Massu said. "This guy's unbelievable. He's never going to umpire me again."
Just three of the 17 U.S. male players are still left -- Agassi, Andy Roddick and Vince Spadea -- and the second round is not complete. Wild card Amer Delic lost to No. 3 Carlos Moya 6-2, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 in Thursday's final match.
No doubt
Agassi kept rolling, and left no doubt that he was far from done. After his win moved him closer toward a ninth Grand Slam championship, he asked whether he might be thinking about leaving tennis sometime soon.
"Well, let this be a signal: I'm not considering retiring at the end of this tournament," he said.
Lindsay Davenport had an easy time, beating Arantxa Parra Santonja 6-4, 6-2 to win her 19th straight match.
But Myskina lost to 17-year-old qualifier Anna Chakvetadze 7-6 (3), 6-3, and Gaudio fell to 2002 Australian Open winner Thomas Johansson 6-3, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4.