Oxfordshire tennis star Tim Henman overcame wind, intermittent rain and cold to beat Richard Fromberg in the Men's Australian Hardcourt Championships in Adelaide.

The top seed beat the Australian 6-3, 6-7, 6-0, winning five straight games to wrap up the third set after a rain delay.

Henman, from Weston-on-the-Green, became top seed when Australia's Lleyton Hewitt, the world No 1 and last year's winner, decided instead to play in the Hopman Cup in Perth.

Henman said: "It's not the conditions you're expecting when you come down to Australia.

"I thought my New Year's resolution was going to be to avoid rain delays after having a few last year."

Last year at Wimbledon, Henman lost a thrilling five-set semi-final to eventual champion Goran Ivanisevic in a game that was played over two days because of breaks for poor weather.

In Adelaide, four matches were postponed or suspended due to the rain.

And one man Henman will not have to worry about is second seed Pete Sampras, who was dumped out by fellow American Todd Martin today.

Martin, a wild card entry, triumphed 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.

In the women's event, defending champion Justine Henin needed three sets to reach the quarter-finals.

The 19-year-old Belgian rallied for a 1-6, 6-0, 6-3 victory over Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia on the Gold Coast.