NEW YORK (AP): Jelena Jankovic bent over her racket, leaned against a back wall with a towel pressed to her face, and sprawled on her stomach in the middle of center court. Then the No. 2 seed gutted her way into the third round of the U.S. Open.

Jankovic outlasted Sweden's Sofia Arvidsson 6-3, 6-7 (5), 7-5 on yet another uncharacteristically mild August Wednesday at Flushing Meadows.

The combination of not being in match condition following a summer knee injury and an array of hard forehands and well-placed drop shots by Arvidsson left Jankovic fighting to get her wind during the 2 hour, 44 minute match in Arthur Ashe Stadium.

``That was a really tough one,'' said Jankovic, who has reached the fourth round in the first three Grand Slam events this year. ``As you can see, I am completely out of breath. She really pushed me to the limit.''

While Jankovic escaped an early exit, No. 8 seed Vera Zvonareva couldn't. Zvonareva was upended by Tatiana Perebiynis of Ukraine 6-3, 6-3 in the tournament's biggest upset yet. Former champion Svetlana Kuznetsova shook off an early break and rallied to a 7-6 (3), 6-1 victory over Sorana Cirstea of Romania.

In men's first-round play, fifth-seeded Nikolay Davydenko beat Dudi Sela of Israel 6-3, 6-3, 6-3; No. 18 Nicolas Almagro eliminated Frank Dancevic of Canada 6-3, 6-4, 7-5; and Jo advance without going the distance. She jumped to a 3-0 lead in the second set tiebreak before losing six straight points. Jankovic extended the set by winning two points on her serve, then fired wide as she approached the net _ drawing an exuberant ``Yeah'' from Arvidsson.