It didn't last. Forty-five minutes later, an error-prone Sanchez-Vicario was out of the Australian Open, losing 6-1, 6-1. Hingis, who has won 26 consecutive matches at the Grand Slam tournament, was closer to a fourth consecutive Australian title.

Hingis faces another Spaniard in the semifinals Thursday, No. 10 Conchita Martinez, whose baseline game is similar to that of Sanchez-Vicario. It's a game the versatile Hingis knows well.

``You know exactly what you have to do,'' said Hingis, who praised Sanchez-Vicario as a player who never gives up. ``You know the player on the other side.

``We had some tough matches, three-setters because she always tried something different against me. She has to once she keeps losing. She has to try to change something. But I always was able to adjust to her game and just beat her.''

Sanchez-Vicario played sloppily, hitting 28 unforced errors to seven by Hingis. She had only six winners to Hingis' 18. Hingis is unbeaten in their last 13 meetings.

``When we had the warmup, I was like, 'OK, she's hitting the ball flat and aggressive,' '' said Hingis, who has won five Grand Slam titles. Last year, she became the first woman to earn more than $3 million in prize money for three consecutive years.

``Today was her day and not my day,'' Sanchez-Vicario said. ``I made a lot of mistakes but she played well.''

No. 2 Lindsay Davenport faces Jennifer Capriati in the other semifinal Thursday.