ROME -- Patty Schnyder appears to be stepping toward fixing her tennis game.
The Swiss player's performance on the court has suffered and she has dropped out of the WTA Tour's top 10 since she broke off her relationship with her parents early in the year.But Schnyder said Wednesday that her mother has joined her at the Italian Open. They hadn't seen each other in two months.
"I told her I would like to have her here and she came," Schnyder said after eliminating Italy's Adriana Serra Zanetti 6-2, 7-5 in the second round.
"It's difficult to stay concentrated. At the moment I don't feel really confident on the court," the fifth seed added. "I have a lot of thoughts on my mind."
Schnyder's father is not in Rome, and she would not discuss whether they, too, have mended their rift.
Also Wednesday, top-seeded Martina Hingis of Switzerland rolled through her first match, closing in on potential meetings with her two closest rivals: the Williams sisters.
Back after a month's layoff, the world's No. 1 player showed little rust in a 6-1, 6-1 rout of France's Natalie Dechy.
"It's good to be back out there. Physically, I think I'm stronger than probably ever," Hingis said.
Most of the seeded players in action Wednesday advanced in straight sets, including No. 2 Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario of Spain, No. 4 Mary Pierce of France and No. 15 Conchita Martinez of Spain, who has four Italian Open crowns to her credit.
One seed went out when No. 12 Amanda Coetzer of South Africa lost to Austria's Sylvia Plischke in three sets.