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Melbourne - Tournament organisers have spared Roger Federer the worst of Thursday's expected extreme heat when he takes on Russian former world No 3 Nikolay Davydenko in the second round of the Australian Open.
The temperature is expected to hit 39 degrees Celsius in Melbourne but the Swiss maestro is likely to commence play in the relative cool of the evening in the opening match of the late session at Rod Laver Arena.
Extreme heat is a feature of the year's first Grand Slam, and the organisers were forced to suspend matches in the 2009 tournament during a period of scorching weather.
Federer, however, could play in air-conditioned comfort under a closed roof against the 40th-ranked Davydenko, should conditions breach the tournament's tolerance threshold.
Andy Murray, six years younger than Federer, will have to sweat it out in the heat as the second match of the day session when he takes on Joao Sousa, a 100th-ranked Portuguese he has never played before.
"I don't know too much about him, but I've seen him play a couple of matches during the clay court season last year in Barcelona," 25-year-old Murray told reporters.
In the women's draw, defending champion Victoria Azarenka and favourite Serena Williams will also play under a scorching sun as the opening two acts at Rod Laver Arena.
Azarenka will play Greece's Eleni Daniilidou before Williams faces Spaniard Garbine Muguruza.
Australia's Bernard Tomic, bearing his country's hopes after ninth seed Sam Stosur was knocked out of the women's tournament, has been given centre court billing for his match against Germany's Daniel Brands in the last match of the day session at Rod Laver Arena.
The much-vaunted 20-year-old will aim to set up a potential third-round match against Federer.
Results from day three of the Australian Open on Wednesday:
Women's singles
Second round
Agnieszka Radwanska (POL x4) bt Irina-Camelia Begu (ROM) 6-3, 6-3
Angelique Kerber (GER x5) bt Lucie Hradecka (CZE) 6-3, 6-1
Kirsten Flipkens (BEL) bt Klara Zakopalova (CZE x23) 6-1, 6-0
Julia Goerges (GER x18) bt Romina Oprandi (SUI) 6-3, 6-2
Valeria Savinykh (RUS) bt Dominika Cibulkova (SVK x15) 7-6 (8/6), 6-4
Li Na (CHN x6) bt Olga Govortsova (BLR) 6-2, 7-5
Ekaterina Makarova (RUS x19) bt Stephanie Foretz Gacon (FRA) 6-3, 6-3
Madison Keys (USA) bt Tamira Paszek (AUT x30) 6-2, 6-1
Zheng Jie (CHN) bt Samantha Stosur (AUS x9) 6-4, 1-6, 7-5
Sorana Cirstea (ROM x27) bt Kristyna Pliskova (CZE) 1-6, 6-3, 6-2
Maria Sharapova (RUS x2) bt Misaki Doi (JPN) 6-0, 6-0
Ana Ivanovic (SRB x13) bt Chan Yung-Jan (TPE) 7-5, 1-6, 6-4
Heather Watson (GBR) bt Ksenia Pervak (KAZ) 4-6, 7-6 (9/7), 6-2
Jelena Jankovic (SRB x22) bt Maria Joao Koehler (POR) 2-6, 7-6 (7/5), 6-2
Marion Bartoli (FRA x11) bt Vesna Dolonc (SRB) 7-5, 6-0
Venus Williams (USA x25) bt Alize Cornet (FRA) 6-3, 6-3
Men's singles
Second record
Nicolas Almagro (ESP x10) bt Daniel Gimeno-Traver (ESP) 6-4, 6-1, 6-2
Kei Nishikori (JPN x16) bt Carlos Berlocq (ARG) 7-6 (7/4), 6-4, 6-1
Sam Querrey (USA x20) bt Brian Baker (USA) 6-7 (2/7), 1-1 ret
Jurgen Melzer (AUT x26) bt Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP) 6-7 (4/7), 6-3, 6-7 (3/7), 6-3, 6-2
Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI x15) bt Tobias Kamke (GER) 6-3, 7-6 (7/4) ret
Jerzy Janowicz (POL x24) bt Somdev Devvarman (IND) 6-7 (10/12), 3-6, 6-1, 6-0, 7-5
Tomas Berdych (CZE x5) bt Guillaume Rufin (FRA) 6-2, 6-2, 6-4
David Ferrer (ESP x4) bt Tim Smyczek (USA) 6-0, 7-5, 4-6, 6-3
Marcos Baghdatis (CYP x28) bt Tatsuma Ito (JPN) 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-2
Evgeny Donskoy (RUS) bt Mikhail Youzhny (RUS x23) 3-6, 7-6 (7/4), 6-2, 3-6, 6-3
Julien Benneteau (FRA x32) bt Edouard Roger-Vasselin (FRA) 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (7/5)
Radek Stepanek (CZE x31) bt Feliciano Lopez (ESP) 6-2, 6-2, 6-4
Kevin Anderson (RSA) bt Andrey Kuznetsov (RUS) 6-1, 7-5, 6-4
Fernando Verdasco (ESP x22) bt Xavier Malisse (BEL) 6-1, 6-3, 6-2
Novak Djokovic (SRB x1) bt Ryan Harrison (USA) 6-1, 6-2, 6-3
Janko Tipsarevic (SRB x8) bt Lukas Lacko (SVK) 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 7-5
