On the record, Mark Philippoussis says he can't win the Australian Open but, on and off the court, there were some worrying implications for his opponents.

Firstly, the big Victorian, who is coming back from his fourth knee operation, disposed of the world's No.19 player, Alex Corretja, in the Commonwealth Bank International at Kooyong, 5-7 6-4 7-6 (7-5).

Then there was confident talk of the state of his troublesome left knee and conflicting comments on the Open starting next week.

Officially, to avoid burdening himself with public expectations, Philippoussis explained why he was in no state to win his national championship.

After that, it was evident he couldn't help betray some positive feelings, especially after bouncing back from a dismal time at the Tata Open in India last week when he fell 6-2 6-1 to unremarkable German Rainer Schuettler.

"I'm feeling pretty good, a little tired, but my knee is not sore or anything which is great because as a three-set match goes it's not going to get any tighter than that," Philippoussis said.

"I'm happy with the way I played - it's a night and day difference the way I played and last week in India.

"My match in India, honestly I've never felt hopeless like that on the court - my serve, my ground strokes, I couldn't get any pace on my forehand.

"The match was quick, it was under 60 minutes, but I felt like I was on the court for two days.

"It just felt like a nightmare that wouldn't end."

The day represented a complete turnaround, he said.

"Obviously I'm happy I won but even if I did lose that match I'd still be happy because I felt like I went up a step in my game," he said.

"I was hitting the ball better, I was a little more positive out there and a match like that is perfect for me."

Philippoussis says he will try his best next week but to win a major means "you've got to be pumped, you've got to be ready to go, you've got be working hard, you've got to have months of training underneath your belt, and running and matchplay".

Contrast that with a first up win at home over a world top 20, which seemed perfectly normal for the Australian.

"I wouldn't say it surprised me, I know what I'm capable of," he said.

"With the game I have, obviously I take risks, I like to go for my big shots.

"I felt like I was consistent when I had to be with my ground strokes and wasn't too impatient so I was happy."

He also sent out a warning that his knee problems were not preying on his mind.

"I never go into a match thinking anything negative about my knee," he said.

"I just go in there getting ready to give it my all ... just waiting for that point, waiting for that ball like nothing's wrong.

"I know I'm going to be fine, I'm a pretty positive person, nothing gets me down.

"When it first happened I was pretty depressed, and you say, `why?' ... especially after the second time, the third time, the fourth time.

"I think the toughest thing is just mentally coming back. Physically you can come back and work on your strength ... but it starts taking a toll on you mentally."

Philippoussis said the major problem with his game was that he hit "way too may double faults" - even with the swirling wind.

"I shouldn't be serving near that many double faults, especially a guy my size, serving from the height up there," he said.

"I've just got to work on the ball toss, the ball toss was too low."

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