Top seed and defending champion Yevgeny Kafelnikov took another step toward his fifth successive Kremlin Cup title with an impressive 6-3 7-6 win over David Nalbandian of Argentina in a second round match today.
But the women's event saw a couple of upsets with high-ranking seeds Justine Henin and Amelie Mauresmo both bowing out to unfancied opponents.
Henin's defeat was particularly stunning as the talented Belgian managed to waste four match points before succumbing in three sets to Austria's Barbara Schett.
Kafelnikov now takes on fifth-seeded Swede Thomas Johansson in the quarter-finals tomorrow.
"I hope I will get a lot of fan support tomorrow. I will need all their help I can get to try to overcome my poor record against Johansson in the last two years," said Kafelnikov, who has lost his last eight matches to the 16th-ranked Swede.
Kafelnikov, who has had an inconsistent year so far, admitted that his marriage problems had contributed to his poor form.
"No question, it affected my play in recent months, but hopefully I have put all my trouble behind me," he said.
Last month, Kafelnikov won custody of his three-year-old daughter Olesya after a lengthy court battle with former wife Maria.
"Now, I can concentrate all my attention on tennis as well as my daughter -- the two things which are the most important to me," he said.