New York ? Martina Hingis, granted a wild card after missing most of the summer because of ankle surgery, won a narrow match over unheralded Marissa Irvin Tuesday at the U.S. Open.

“Players like her, you have nothing to lose,” Hingis said after a 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 win. “I gave her the confidence to come back in the match.”

Hingis is on an island here, competing against players who have been on the court all summer while she was recuperating from knee surgery.

“Everybody’s been playing without me the last three or four months,” she said. “It’s not like I feel I’m not there. It’s just making the last step.”

Former men’s champ Marat Safin survived Nicolas Kiefer 6-3, 4-6, 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (4).

Mark Philippoussis wrenched his left knee in the fourth set against No. 24 Sjeng Schalken and had to stop four games later. Philippoussis was leading 2-1 in sets.

Two-time defending champion Venus Williams had an easy time eliminating Mirjana Lucic 6-0, 6-0. Monica Seles, who won the Open twice in the 1990s, eliminated Zsofia Gubacsi 6-3, 6-3. Jennifer Capriati also beat Bethanie Mattek 6-0, 6-0.