Tennis/Australian Open Championships: According to Dorothy Parker, men don't make passes at girls who wear glasses. Silvia Farina Elia, of course, has no need to abide by such advice and the Italian duly crashed shot after shot past Elena Baltacha for a 6-1, 6-0 third-round victory that brought an abrupt end to the British player's Australian Open run.
But, as was remarked afterwards, few losers have ever looked quite so happy.
Of course, Baltacha was disappointed. She had, in her own words, got her "arse kicked". But, when she stepped on court for the first of her three qualifying matches last week, she would have happily settled for this. It was the second time the 21-year-old Ukrainian-born Baltacha had reached the third round of a major but there was no real comparison with 2002 at Wimbledon where she had the luxury of a wild card to sweep her past the qualifying bun fight.
"I've done it myself this time and it's so much more rewarding. I think I've recognised what I'm capable of - I've dug deep and I know I can get better."
Her ranking will rise about 60 places to the mid 120s, with the prospect of getting into better-quality WTA tournaments and of entering the main draws for the remaining three majors as of right, assuming she builds on the success of the last 10 days here.
Because of her illnesses during her teenage years Baltacha now has little time to lose, though she was finally beaten by a player 11 years her senior. Baltacha's main asset is her exuberance and never-say-die spirit but she will need to develop much more in the way of variety if she is to progress significantly. In the men's game the top 100 is the benchmark; in the women's it is the top 50.
Farina Elia, the number 15 seed, was well aware Baltacha could be dangerous if she was allowed to get into her own rhythm. The Italian made doubly sure that she mixed up the angles and the pace of her shots and it all proved too much for the British number one.
"I didn't know what to do in the end. I haven't played anyone ranked that high outside of Wimbledon and she was just too good. She's unbelievably quick and awesome," said Baltacha.
The latter is not a word the Italians themselves reserve for Farina Elia and served to emphasise the immense gap that remains between what Baltacha has achieved this week and what lies ahead.
"I know I need to get quicker visually together with my leg speed. I need to know where I am on the court better and what I'm meant to be doing next. My serve has gone a bit funny - I mean, to be honest, I could go on and on and on about my weaknesses. But I feel there is a lot more to come and I would have felt that even if I had lost in the first round of qualifying."
There is no doubt Baltacha will stay loyal to her current coaches, Alan Jones and Jo Durie, who stuck by her when the times were tough, lending support and encouragement. However, there is an argument for bringing in someone with a little more experience of the game outside the parochial confines of the British scene. It is vitally important Baltacha receives the right advice and the correct coaching. Having built up a head of steam, having established the momentum, she now needs to press on, although she does not appear to be receiving those signals.
"Alan [ Jones] has kind of said 'Let's not rush ahead' and I know this isn't my last chance to get into the top 100. I will have a lot more opportunities and I'm not going to get trapped into thinking 'Oh my God, I'm nearly there.' I'm not going to do that."
It is to be hoped she is right, and it has to be borne in mind she has fought her way through considerable health difficulties.
Martina Navratilova yesterday took a swipe at the American trainer Pat Etcheberry for pushing Belgium's Justine Henin-Hardenne, the currently injured reigning champion, too hard. Nobody in the English game would wish to see Baltacha pushed beyond her limits or the expectations to be pitched too high. These have been a marvellous few days for her.
The leading seeds in the bottom half of the draw went through with ease, with the prospective quarter-finals between Serena Williams and France's Amelie Mauresmo, and the all-Russian face-off between Maria Sharapova, the Wimbledon champion, and Svetlana Kuznetsova, the US Open champion, still in place.
WOMEN'S SINGLES: Third round: (5) Svetlana Kuznetsova (Rus) bt Mariana Diaz-Oliva (Arg) 6-3 7-6 (7-5); Vera Douchevina (Rus) bt Anna-Lena Groenefeld (Ger) 7-5 6-4; (15) Silvia Farina Elia (Ita) bt Elena Baltacha (Brit) 6-1 6-0; (4) Maria Sharapova (Rus) bt Na Li (Chn) 6-0 6-2; (7) Serena Williams (USA) bt Sania Mirza (Ind) 6-1 6-4; (11) Nadia Petrova (Rus) bt (22) Magdalena Maleeva (Bul) 6-4 6-4; Evgenia Linetskaya (Rus) bt (21) Amy Frazier (USA) 6-3 6-4; (2) Amelie Mauresmo (Fra) bt A Ivanovic (Ser) 6-2 7-5.
