Injuries take their toll as Williams and Henin bow out of Australian Open

• Venus Williams reacts in pain during her brief encounter with Germany's Andrea Petkovic Picture: Getty Images

Fourth-seed Williams lasted just four minutes in her night match against German Andrea Petkovic on Rod Laver Arena before the leg strain she sustained in the second round flared up.

Henin, like Williams a seven-times grand slam champion, was still clearly hampered by the elbow injury that wrecked her 2010 campaign as she bowed out 6-4 7-6 to Svetlana Kuznetsova.

Williams, whose sister Serena, the defending champion, missed the tournament through injury, said she had hoped for some "magic" to allow her to play after hurting herself on Wednesday.

However, she gave up after just seven points. "I just obviously couldn't play," she said. "I mean, just couldn't move. Just too painful. A lot of times when you play you get this adrenaline that blocks pain, but I just didn't get enough of that today."

Her departure leaves a grand slam without an American woman in the last 16 for only the fourth time, the last time being at the French Open in 2008.

Henin, who made a fairytale run to the final last year on her return from retirement, made her earliest exit from Melbourne Park in 11 visits. The 2004 champion racked up 41 unforced errors and even her Russian opponent's late nerves could not save her.

"It's disappointing to lose like this," said Henin. "She was just better than me, especially in the important moments."

Kuznetsova's reward was a tie against her friend and French Open champion, Francesca Schiavone, after the Italian beat Romanian Monica Niculescu 6-0 7-6. "We have a great friendship," the Russian said of Schiavone. "But we are both athletes. Out on court we're animals and kind of fighters against each other."

Henin's departure leaves Maria Sharapova as the only former champion in the women's draw. The Russian, seeded 14th, made hard work of beating German Julia Goerges 4-6 6-4 6-4 but said she was delighted with her fitness after a two-and-a-half hour win set up a meeting with Petkovic.

Women's world No 1 Caroline Wozniacki moved comfortably into the fourth round with a 6-4 6-3 win over Dominika Cibulkova before having a bit of fun with the media. The 20-year-old Dane took charge of her post-match press conference, giving the answers to stock questions before they were asked, before asking for more interesting inquiries.

She is single at the moment but predicts her future husband could be an athlete. He must be honest and understand the demands of her profession. "Sometimes the media is too good-looking here, so I can't really focus on what I'm supposed to say," she joked, drawing hearty laughter from the middle-aged media contingent slumped in their chairs. Other topics included her hopes that Liverpool win more matches under Kenny Dalglish. She also offered up suggestions for questions to ask, or not to ask, other players. For example: Do not ask Andy Murray if he thinks he will win a Grand Slam this year. The 23-year-old Scot, who is trying to become the first Briton to win a major since 1936, is bound to be tired of that one. "I know he likes PlayStation, so I'd probably ask him a few questions about that," she suggested.