May 14, 2008	Wednesday	Jamadi-ul-Awwal 8, 1429

HAMBURG (Germany), May 13: Australian Open finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga recovered from a first set white-wash to beat French compatriot Nicolas Mahut in the first round of the Hamburg Masters here on Monday.

And Britain’s No 1 Andy Murray also moved into the second round with a comfortable 6-4, 6-1 victory over Russia’s Dmitry Tursunov.

Tsonga got off to a rusty start, winning just 12 of 40 points in the first set, but bounced back to record a 0-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-3 win.

Local hero Nicolas Kiefer pleased the crowds when he defeated 16th seed Paul-Henri Mathieu from France 6-4, 6-4.Spaniard Fernando Verdasco caused an early upset when he beat 10th-seed Mikhail Youzhny of Russia 6-3, 6-2.

Argentine 12th seed Juan Monaco made the second round after Italy’s Filippo Volandri retired with a knee injury after less than an hour of their game.

Monaco will next meet recent Munich finalist Simone Bolelli of Italy, who beat Spanish qualifier Marcel Granollers 7-5, 6-2.

Monday’s results (prefix number denotes seeding):

First round: Michael Llodra (France) bt Guillermo Canas (Argentina) 7-6 (9-7), 6-2; Andreas Seppi (Italy) bt Michael Berrer (Germany) 6-3, 6-0; Nicolas Kiefer (Germany) bt 16-Paul-Henri Mathieu (France) 6-4, 6-4; Marat Safin (Russia) bt Marin Cilic (Croatia) 7-5, 6-2; Albert Montanes (Spain) bt Mardy Fish (US) 6-1, 6-3; 15-Andy Murray (Britain) bt Dmitry Tursunov (Russia) 6-4, 6-1; Juan Ignacio Chela (Argentina) bt Jose Antonio Sanchez de Luna (Spain) 6-3, 6-3; Olivier Rochus (Belgium) bt Gianluca Naso (Italy) 7-6 (13-11), 2-6, 6-4; 14-Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (France) bt Nicolas Mahut (France) 0-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-2; Simone Bolelli (Italy) bt Marcel Granollers (Spain) 7-5, 6-2; Ivo Minar (Czech Republic) bt Feliciano Lopez (Spain) 6-3, 6-4; Fernando Verdasco (Spain) bt 10-Mikhail Youzhny (Russia) 6-3, 6-2; 12-Juan Monaco (Argentina) bt Filippo Volandri (Italy) 6-1, 4-0 – Volandri retired.

SEEDS ADVANCE

ROME: Vera Zvonareva, Agnes Szavay, Francesca Schiavone and Agnieszka Radwanska faced few problems on the first day of the Italian Open on Monday with all four seeds coasting into the second round.

Russian Zvonareva, the 10th seed, was the first one through with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Japanese veteran Ai Sugiyama.

Eleventh-seeded Hungarian Szavay had an even easier time of it against another Asian player as she thrashed China’s Zi Yan 6-1, 6-1.

Home favourite Schiavone, who lives in London, had the toughest test of the three against Czech youngster Lucie Safarova.

But the 17th-seed, a former Fed Cup winner battled through 6-4, 7-5 to clinch the first round match.

Radwanska, seeded 12, made short work of Uzbekistan’s Akgul Amanmuradova in a 6-3, 6-0 rout.

In the late game Italian Sara Errani kept the sparse home crowd happy with a 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 defeat of China’s Peng Shuai.

Errani’s compatriot Mara Santangelo did not fare so well, though, losing 6-2, 6-2 to Ukrainian doubles specialist Alona Bondarenko, who will play fifth seed Serena Williams in the second round.

Australian Samantha Stosur was another first round winner as she eliminated Michaela Krajicek of the Netherlands 6-3, 6-2.

Results:

First round: 12-Agnieszka Radwanska (Poland) bt Akgul Amanmuradova (Uzbekistan) 6-3, 6-0; Olga Govortsova (Belarus) bt Karin Knapp (Italy) 4-6, 6-1, 6-2; Iveta Benesova (Czech Republic) bt Elena Vesnina (Russia) 6-3, 7-5; Alona Bondarenko (Ukraine) bt Mara Santangelo (Italy) 6-2, 6-2; 17-Francesca Schiavone (Italy) bt Lucie Safarova (Czech Republic) 6-4, 7-5; Anabel Medina Garrigues (Spain) bt Alisa Kleybanova (Russia) 6-1, 7-5; Monica Niculescu (Romania) bt Jill Craybas (US) 6-4, 3-6, 6-4; Caroline Wozniacki (Denmark) bt Tamira Paszek (Austria) 6-3, 6-0; Virginia Ruano Pascual (Spain) bt Anastasia Rodionova (Russia) 6-1, 6-3; 11-Agnes Szavay (Hungary) bt Yan Zi (China) 6-1, 6-1; 10-Vera Zvonareva (Russia) bt Ai Sugiyama (Japan) 6-3, 6-3; Virginie Razzano (France) bt Julia Vakulenko (Ukraine) 6-1, 6-2; Samantha Stosur (Australia) bt Michaella Krajicek (Netherlands) 6-3, 6-2; Sara Errani (Italy) bt Peng Shuai (China) 6-4, 1-6, 6-3.—Agencies