After a disappointing semifinal loss at the U.S. Open, Hingis bounced back in impressive fashion last week as she captured the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix at Filderstadt, Germany. She dropped just 10 games in four matches to improve her season record to 62-9.

A winner of 32 career singles titles, the 20-year-old Hingis has never captured a tournament in her homeland, although she has come close with runner-up showings here in 1996 and 1999. With a title this week, she could surpass reigning Wimbledon and U.S. Open champion Venus Williams for the WTA Tour lead.

Williams, the defending champion, was scheduled to compete this week but decided to stay in the United States and return to fashion school.

Two-time champion Lindsay Davenport, seeded second, is back in action this week, hoping she is fully recovered from an inflamed left foot that forced her to pull out of the Olympics.

Davenport won her first-round match at Sydney but could not continue the quest to defend her gold medal when the foot problems -- which have hampered her since late August -- resurfaced and caused her to withdraw.

Davenport, who won here in 1997 and 1998, has compiled a 45-10 record in 2000 but has not won a tournament since April. The 24-year-old American has claimed two titles, including the Australian Open, and was runner-up to Williams at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open.

Three seeded players advanced to the second round today. No. 5 Amanda Coetzer of South Africa dumped Magui Serna of Spain, 6-4, 6-1; No. 7 Chanda Rubin of the United States rallied past Silvija Talaja of Croatia, 2-6, 6-1, 6-2; and Olympic silver medalist Elena Dementieva of Russia, seeded eighth, downed Ruxandra Dragomir of Romania, 6-3, 6-4.

Two-time finalist Nathalie Tauziat of France is seeded third, followed by Russian teenager Anna Kournikova, still seeking her first career title. The top four seeds received first-round byes.

Jennifer Capriati of the United States, a winner at Luxembourg two weeks ago, looks to rebound from her first-round loss at Filderstadt as the sixth seed this week.

First prize at this hardcourt event is $166,000.