Maria Sharapova rolls into fourth round

Third seed Maria Sharapova continued her march through the U.S. Open by beating fellow Russian Elena Likhovtseva 6-3 6-2 in the third round on Sunday.

Sharapova has not lost a set in her three matches and enters the second week of the Open playing exceptionally well.

"The second week of a Grand Slam is obviously going to be a lot tougher than the first," she said. "That's a no brainer. But with every match you've got to play better and better tennis to win it.

"That's what it's all about at the end of the day."

Likhovtseva never had any weapons to hurt Sharapova, totaling only four winners in the 64-minute match. Her only chance came in the second set when she raced into a 2-0 lead.

"She knows how to play against top players," Sharapova said. "I expected a really tough match. I was ready. That little break in the first game of the second set was a little bit of a wakeup call and I knew I needed to step it up."

Sharapova had only three unforced errors in the second set while winning six straight games.

In the fourth round, Sharapova plays Li Na, who became the first Chinese woman to reach the last 16 at the U.S. Open with a stunning 4-6 6-0 6-0 victory over 2005 runner-up Mary Pierce.

Sharapova has won all three career matches against Li.

"I've had a couple past meetings with her this year and she's improving with every month. She's a very tough and solid player. She's going to make me hit a lot of balls.

"But that's her game. I've beaten her the last couple times. I just have to go out there and try to do the same thing and come out with a win. I'm looking forward to it."