For the simple reason that his body does not hurt any more, Greg Rusedski cannot wait to take on world number one and top seed Gustavo Kuerten at the Australian Open tomorrow.

Sounding like a man who believes he has been given a second chance at life - or tennis at least - Rusedski considers himself as having nothing to lose in the second-round clash.

''He is a fantastic player and his game's technically perfect, but I'll be able to relax more because there won't be any pressure or expectation on me,'' said Rusedski following a four-set win over South African qualifier Marcos Ondruska which was more satisfying for how he felt rather than how he played.

After his crash down the rankings last year - from a high of fourth in October 1997 he dropped to 69th - the 27-year-old knew the rebuilding process from foot, back and wrist injuries (and a loss of confidence) would be slow.

But already he has been amazed by the improvement and said: ''It's a huge difference it's not comparable. I played three matches in under 24 hours in Auckland last week and although I was tired, nothing hurt.

''It's quite exciting actually. It's given me new life a little bit. I've taken the stress off my body with some subtle changes and I feel good.

''There are still areas to work on and my expectations are not that high to be honest with you because I'm still trying to get everything back together.''

It is not solely on court where the changes - principally a different serving action with the help of ex-Wimbledon champion Pat Cash are apparent. Rusedski has also altered his diet and feels he is a different person too.

''It's tough because you have your ups and downs and you're not the same character. I wasn't as easy to get along with, not as friendly. But now I am again, I guess,'' he said.

''If I hadn't had my wife and family and friends there for me it would have been a lot harder. But they understood I was going to have periods where I was going to be down.

''It would be only normal for most human beings. It's not easy waking up feeling bad and having to go visit the doctor.

''But now I'm waking up feeling good. I think I've found a solution, which is great. That's the most positive thing for me.''

As he spoke, Brazilian Kuerten was receiving treatment for some muscle tightness he felt in his victory also in four sets over Argentina's Gaston Gaudio.

Kuerten said: ''I think it's nothing to worry about. I could run and play as I wanted. I do a lot of stretching and massage and I hope I don't feel soreness tomorrow.

''I'm expecting a tough match. The key is returning his serve and I'll be trying to make him work a lot.''

Rusedski actually holds a 3-1 lead in matches between the two, but while he has gone backwards in his career since they last met two years ago, Kuerten has rocketed to the summit of the sport, taking a second French Open and then the season-ending Masters Cup to pip Russian Marat Safin for the number one spot.

Kuerten has never gone beyond the second round in four trips to Melbourne.

As Tim Henman's second-round tussle with Ecuador's 1999 semi-finalist Nicolas Lapentti approached last night there had still not been a seed beaten in the men's singles.

But Lleyton Hewitt, the 19-year-old whom many are tipping to become the first Australian winner of the title since the Mark Edmondson in 1976, came mighty close.

Hewitt trailed Swede Jonas Bjorkman two sets to one and three times faced break point against him in the fourth. But the seventh seed came through on his third match point 7-5 4-6 2-6 6-3 6-2.

It was a successful day for the women's seeds as well, although Wimbledon, US Open and Olympic champion Venus Williams was given a real scare when 18-year-old Spanish qualifier Maria Martinez won the second set in her first grand slam match.

Williams' answer was to take the decider 6-0, just as sister Serena was seeing off Taipei's Janet Lee without any such alarm.

Top seed Martina Hingis dropped only two games against Hungarian Katalin Marosi-Aracama and France's Amelie Mauresmo was relieved to be a straight-sets winner against Japan's Ai Sugiyama only four days after pulling out of the adidas International in Sydney with back trouble