INDIAN WELLS -- The No. 1 and No. 2 players in the world may still have a chance to face off in another a duel in the desert.
Martina Hingis and Lindsay Davenport didn�t have that opportunity two weeks ago when weather forced the cancellation of the women�s singles championship in State Farm Tennis Classic in Scottsdale, Ariz.
However, both Hingis and Davenport were singles winners again Sunday at the Indian Wells Tennis Masters Series.
Hingis, currently ranked No. 1 in the world and the top seed here, was a morning-round winner over Japan�s Ai Sugiyama, 6-1, 6-2.
Davenport, who stands at No. 2 and the second seed here, had a more difficult time in her 39-minute opening match victory Saturday over Romania�s Irina Spirlea (6-0, 6-1), but still knocked out a determined Natasha Zvereva of Belarus, 6-4, 6-2, on Sunday.
History: Since Davenport�s three powerful victories over Hingis last season (Sydney, Philadelphia, Chase Championships), Hingis has been working on her consistency -- and that has showed here early. A 6-3, 6-3 opening-round win over Amy Frazier wasn�t even close.
"I�ve been working on my all-around game," said Hingis following Sunday�s triumph. "I also served quite well, especially today. I made a lot of points, even aces, a lot of direct winners almost. I think I played quite well at the net today. I made a few points."
She also opened a few eyes.
However, Davenport says the two are the equal favorites here, just because of that consistency.
In 1999, Davenport won the Chase season-ending championship over Hingis to tie Hingis for the most singles titles (seven), and to sweep Hingis in all three of their 1999 meetings.
The two finished the �99 season tied for 16th place on the Open Era titles list with an outstanding 26 each.
Davenport holds the edge in the series between the two, 10-7.
"Going into every tournament, I think I�m the favorite to win the tournament," said Davenport. "I think equally Martina is the favorite. Right now, we�re pretty close. We�ve both been such consistent performers now that it�s real close."
'Home� court: If one has an edge here this year, it may be the Southern California native Davenport. She got on a couple of rolls, especially in 1998 when she captured numerous tournaments in her home state. Her five singles titles were at the U.S. Open, Pan Pacific, Stanford, San Diego, Los Angeles and Zurich.
"When you�re confident, you seem to play the more important points better because you obviously believe that you can do it. You just have a lot of confidence in your shots and a lot of momentum carries on match through match," Davenport explained.
Hingis, who used her solid serving game throughout Sunday�s victory, admits there�s a rivalry between the two, but a friendly one.
She said to have that kind of unique competition gives her someone to look up to in order to improve her game.
"When I started on Tour, she (Davenport) was obviously better because she was older and around for longer," said Hingis, 19. "Then, I kind of kept up with her. I even improved the level a bit more. At one stage, I was beating her.
"Now, she�s kind of bounced back."
Davenport, 23, has battled back so much that all three victories over Hingis last season were two-set wins. Hingis last defeated Davenport at the 1998 Chase Championships.
In the next round, Hingis will face 10th-seed Barbara Schett of Austria today, while Davenport takes on Julie Halard-Decugis of France, the ninth seed.