Holder Ana Ivanovic underlined her credentials for a second French Open title with a 6-0, 6-2 demolition of Czech Iveta Benesova in the third round in Paris, on Friday.

The Serbian eighth seed needed just over an hour to set up a meeting with either ninth seed Victoria Azarenka of Belarus or Spaniard Carla Suarez Navarro, seeded 22nd.

"I feel physically fit and ready to handle any kind of opponent. I feel my game is coming back and I feel more confident and more comfortable on the court. I just feel content about my fitness level, as well. Just trying to enjoy basically and compete," said Ivanovic.

World number one Rafael Nadal stitched up a straightforward 6-1, 6-3, 6-1 victory over Lleyton Hewitt to keep on track his bid for a record fifth consecutive French Open crown.

What had on paper looked like a interesting third-round match, with Hewitt one of the few players without a losing record against the Spaniard, quickly became a drab affair as the Australian former world number one put up little resistance.

Actress Eva Longoria (right) and her husband NBA basketball player Tony Parker watch the third round match between Nadal and Hewitt.

Nadal's pink shirt and yellow sweatbands were the match's main bright spots as former Wimbledon and US Open champion Hewitt seemed resigned to his fate from the outset, going out to an ace after one hour and 51 minutes.

Russian Maria Sharapova continued her comeback from injury with a 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over Kazakh Yaroslava Shvedova.

The 102nd ranked Russian seems to have become a firm favourite as she is on a comeback trail following a nine-month layoff with a career-threatening shoulder injury.

"Especially here in France, I think they always love the underdog, and they always love the one that comes back from behind, or the one that's not expected to win. I'm probably that person," said the three-times Grand Slam champion.

Venus Williams was sent packing from the French Open with a humiliating 6-0, 6-4 defeat by Hungary's Agnes Szavay in the third round.

The American, who lost at the same stage in 2007 and 2008, did not recover from a miserable start as 29th seed Szavay advanced to meet Slovakia's Dominika Cibulkova after 81 minutes.

Russian world number one Dinara Safina used her devastating forehand to hammer teenage compatriot Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-2, 6-0 and reach the fourth round.

Safina, seeking her maiden Grand Slam title, will take on France's Aravane Rezai in the next round.