THE WOMEN'S draw was close to being one diva down on only the third day at Wimbledon. Ana Ivanovic needed all the mojo of her assembly of superstitions in the third set yesterday to see off Nathalie Dechy.

Even the final stroke of the match had hearts stopping as the top seed's forehand hit the net, spun in the air for what seemed like an eternity before falling in for a 6-7 (2), 7-6 (3), 10-8 win.

"I felt like time stopped for a moment," said Ivanovic. "The ball hit the net and it was in the air for a couple of seconds. I thought maybe even it will go out. I felt so lucky. If it wasn't for that net, I would be booking my flight back home."

Ivanovic kissed the tape afterwards, as much in gasping relief as gratitude. "The net deserved a kiss," Dechy wryly observed.

The match was one of the longest women's singles in the history of the tournament weighing in at three hours 24 minutes.

The first set was almost an hour, the second over an hour and the third nearly an hour and a half as the battling 29-year-old French woman regularly unhinged the younger player, who compounded her poor serving with a string of 36 unforced errors.

Ivanovic, who is bidding to add the Wimbledon title to her French Open crown, was far from happy with her performance against the 97th-ranked Dechy, who consistently had her under pressure with a busy, aggressive and upbeat routine.

The Serb had beaten Dechy three times prior to Wimbledon, twice on clay and once on carpet but never before on grass.

Ivanovic, though, was battle hardened enough to hang in and prolong the match until finally she found an opening.

With Ivanovic's game in disarray and Dechy's industry and fight a consistent worry to her, the top seed could not find a rhythm that would allow her famed forehand to consistently boom.

"I thought I wasn't serving so well. My percentage was low. She was serving well and her balls were so deep.

"I had the feeling I wasn't doing enough and it was because she was playing so well."

It would have been a catastrophic day for Serbia had Ivanovic joined Novak Djokovic on the plane home. The two were actually playing at the same time, Djokovic on Centre Court and Ivanovic on Court One.

No such anxieties visited Serena Williams in her second-round match against Grand Slam debutant Urszula Radwanska.

The young Polish player, who is the 2007 ITF Junior World Champion, has been making a steady transition into senior ranks, where her sister, Agnieszka, is already ranked 14 in the world.

But Williams smoothly moved on with a 6-4, 6-4 win. The American now has an interesting game against Amelie Mauresmo, one of the few players, now that Justin Henin has retired, who plays with a one-handed back hand and who is comfortable on grass.

The 28-year-old Mauresmo stuttered before easily beating 34-year-old Spaniard, Virginia Ruano Pascual 4-6, 6-1, 6-1.

Mauresmo has had her injury problems this season and after a poor French Open, she is unlikely to step on to court with full confidence. And for her that spells danger.

"I haven't played her in a while," said Williams. "She's been struggling a lot this year. So you can only hope she does well, especially being a past champion here."

Mauresmo won the title in 2006 as the world number one. She has since fallen to 33 on the ladder.