MELBOURNE, Australia -- Riding a 26-match winning streak, Martina Hingis considers the Australian Open her own personal tournament.

Hingis, seeking a fourth consecutive Australian Open title, needed only 45 minutes Wednesday to dispose of No. 13 Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario 6-1, 6-1.

	Martina Hingis said fast surfaces suit her game.

Next up for Hingis is No. 10 Conchita Martinez, who struggled 2½ hours to beat No. 16 Elena Likhovtseva 6-3, 4-6, 9-7.

"Hopefully she is going to be a little bit slower tomorrow, so I have to make her run," said Hingis, who has not lost to Martinez in their last seven matches.

Nor has she lost to Sanchez-Vicario in their last 13 meetings, despite constant efforts by the Spaniard to find new tactics.

"I always was able to adjust to her game and just beat her," said Hingis, who hit 19 winners while Sanchez-Vicario had just six -- and 24 unforced errors.

Hingis, 19, has noted frequently that the tournament's Rebound Ace courts are the same type she has in her backyard in Florida -- a type she considers suited to her game.

The Australian Open "has always been the lucky one for me," she said. "It was my first one, and I could defend it. ... I like three, but four will be even better."

If she reaches the final, she will face either No. 2 Lindsay Davenport, the Wimbledon champion, or a resurgent Jennifer Capriati, in her first Grand Slam semifinal in nine years.

"(Hingis) can come in, stay back, do anything," said Sanchez-Vicario, who has won four titles in her 49 Grand Slam appearances.

Martinez, the 1994 Wimbledon champion and a 1998 Australian finalist, wore down Likhovtseva with heavy topsin and relentless retrieving. She reached the semifinals for the 11th time in her 42 Grand Slam tournaments.

Likhovtseva, who beat U.S. Open champion and No. 3 Serena Williams to reach her first Grand Slam quarterfinal, saved two match points at 6-5 in the final set, but then fell victim to errors and passing shots.

Martinez said that in her quarterfinal, "I was never comfortable. I was a little bit tired and it was very tough to go so long. But I will get some rest and hopefully be fit for tomorrow."