NEW YORK -- In a couple of weeks, they will be side-by-side in Sydney, representing the United States in the Olympic Games.

On Friday, though, they were on opposite sides of the net. And all that mattered to Todd Martin and Michael Chang was their second-round match at the U.S. Open.

	Friday's second-round match was Michael Chang's first loss to Todd Martin in six career meetings.

Playing with a sense of serenity and a huge serve, Martin cruised to a 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 victory that thrust him into the third round of the tournament, the furthest he's advanced in any Grand Slam tournament this year.

A finalist at the Open a year ago, Martin has had a difficult year, knocked off the U.S. Davis Cup team in February by a viral infection and then sidelined until May after tearing ligaments in his ankle while playing basketball.

There have been four first-round rubouts, and that left him unseeded at the Open. But he feels better about his game despite the setbacks.

"I really feel I'm a better player," he said. "I don't do things as well as I used to. The general package is I'm a better player. I understand how to defend the court better and I understand how to play a neutral point and stay neutral.

"Each and every year, I develop a greater level of confidence at the net. I might not hit my backhand as well as I used to. I might not serve as well as I used to. I might not throw caution to the wind as much as I used to."

But at the advanced tennis age of 30, he seems to be having fun. He looks older, perhaps because of the gray at his temples and because it seems like he's been around forever.

"I've felt experienced for a while," he said. "Each and every year, a good friend of mine seems to retire. Each and every year, about 20 new players that are in their teens come up and start beating up on us.

"I mean I feel old but I don't feel elderly. I feel like I've aged and I feel like I've more or less improved with age. I still get a little kid's feeling when I go out and play a little kid's game."

Like Martin, Chang arrived at the Open unseeded, hoping to get past the first week. But his Olympic teammate was having none of that.

"Todd was serving pretty well today," he said, "definitely hitting all the spots pretty good. He was going pretty much right at me, at my body and stuff. I just couldn't do much with it."

In six previous meetings, Martin had beaten Chang just once. But this time, Chang could not break through.

"It was hard to make a dent in his serve," he said. "I just didn't get many opportunities. That kind of hurts me, particularly against a guy like Todd. I know if I'm able to break him on his serve, then I know I'm in good shape."

Martin's first serves on Friday were deadly. He put 44 of them in play and won 43, leaving very little room for Chang to do anything. He came to the net 41 times and won 37 of those points. It was textbook tennis.

"His game is so simple," Chang said. "If you ever look at his stroke, his technique, there's really not much to it. It's straight, fundamental tennis. Keep it to that, and there's not much that can go wrong."

Martin showed Friday that analysis was right on target.

No. 3 Magnus Norman -- the highest-seeded player remaining in the men's draw -- won his second-round match Friday, as did No. 6 Marat Safin, No. 8 Alex Corretja, No. 10 Cedric Pioline, No. 12 Juan Carlos Ferrero and No. 14 Nicolas Kiefer.

Unlike Thursday, when defending champion and top-seeded Andre Agassi was ousted, no seeded players were eliminated Friday on the hardcourts of the National Tennis Center.

The night's final match, between No. 15 Mark Philippoussis and Jan-Michael Gambill, was postponed by rain and rescheduled for Saturday.