MELBOURNE, Australia (AP):

Ana Ivanovic's hopes of a return trip to the Australian Open final fell apart in a barrage of mistakes yesterday as Russia's Alisa Kleybanova ousted her 7-5, 6-7 (5), 6-2 in the third round.

With 19-year-old Kleybanova constantly aggressive, fifth-ranked Ivanovic lost her serve nine times and finished with 50 unforced errors to just 23 winners.

When it was over, Kleybanova dropped to both knees, pumped her fists and blew kisses at the crowd. Ivanovic appeared to be nearly in tears as she walked off court.

Ethnic violence

The Serb's loss came on a day that the late match between second-ranked Roger Federer against former number one Marat Safin - which the Swiss star won in three sets - was supposed to produce the biggest news.

Instead, ethnic violence erupted between nationalist fans after Serbia's Novak Djokovic, the defending men's champion, beat Bosnian-born American Amer Delic.

One of several thrown chairs hit a woman and left her briefly unconscious though not seriously injured. Police said about 30 Bosnian and Serbian youths were ejected from Melbourne Park. Two men were charged with riotous behaviour and a third was fined on the spot.

This was what organisers had feared when they announced before the tournament that they were instituting a no-tolerance policy for disruptions.

They wanted the focus on tennis - such as Kleybanova's upset victory, Andy Roddick's 22 aces while winning in straight sets or top-ranked Jelena Jankovic and number three Dinara Safina advancing.

Instead of talking about how defending champion Djokovic reached the third round with a 6-2, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4) victory packed with drama and good sportsmanship - the 21-year-old Serb and Bosnian-born Delic were mostly quizzed about the chaotic scene that followed, when their supporters clashed outside near a big-screen TV showing the match.

"There's absolutely no place for that here. This is a tennis match," said Delic, who attended the University of Illinois and lives in Jacksonville, Florida. "As I'm sure you all saw at the end, Novak and I are friends. We're both competitors. In the end it was a fair match and there was no reason for such things."

Before finally asking reporters to change the subject, Djokovic lamented that players can't control their fans. Delic had earlier used his Web site to ask his backers, who were boisterous to the point of disruption in the qualifier's first two matches, to tone it down.

The rematch of the 2005 men's semi-final here, won by Safin en route to the championship, was dominated by Federer, who again looked sharp in his pursuit of a 14th Grand Slam title that would tie Pete Sampras' record, winning 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 (5).

"He gave me quite a few free points in the first two sets, but after that he got tougher," Federer said. "I'm pretty lucky I got through in three."

After dropping the first set, 21-year-old Ivanovic lost her first two service games in the second, falling behind 0-3. She rallied to force a tiebreaker, where both women were pumping their fists after every point they won. Ivanovic did a three-punch combination after whacking an overhead winner on set point.

The jubilation was shortlived: Ivanovic found herself facing 0-3 again in the deciding set and never caught up. Serving at 2-5, she fell behind 0-40. She saved one match point with a high, lunging volley winner before Kleybanova hit a forehand crosscourt that went untouched to end the match in 2 hours and 43 minutes.

Kleybanova, who reached the fourth round at Wimbledon last year in her third Grand Slam, dropped to her knees in relief and disbelief.

"It was one of the most exciting matches of my life," Kleybanova said. "I will never forget this night."

Serbia's Ana Ivanovic reacts as she leaves the court after losing to Russia's Alisa Kleybanova in a women's singles match at the Australian Open Tennis Championship. -Ap Photos