MOSCOW, Oct 7: Former world No 1 Amelie Mauresmo survived a strong challenge from Alize Cornet to beat her fellow Frenchwoman 6-7, 6-3, 6-4 in the Kremlin Cup first round on Monday.
Mauresmo, who has dropped outside the top 20 because of injury and poor form, trailed 4-3 in the final set before reeling off the last three games to secure her first win since Aug. 31.
The players struggled to hold serve on the fast indoor surface of the Olympic sports complex but Mauresmo’s experience gave her the edge in the decider.
The unseeded Mauresmo, who reached the final here in 2003, next meets in-form Russian second seed Dinara Safina.
Former Wimbledon finalist Marion Bartoli of France was forced to retire against unseeded Slovak Dominika Cibulkova with a toe injury.
Cibulkova, who was leading 6-1 4-1, next plays Serbian fourth seed Ana Ivanovic.
Home player Vera Dushevina also put out Czech Nicole Vaidisova 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 to set up a clash with top seed Jelena Jankovic.
The women’s tournament is the strongest in the Kremlin Cup’s 19-year history, with eight of the world’s top 10 taking part.
Only world No 2 Serena Williams and number six Maria Sharapova are absent because of injury.
In the men’s event, Russian second seed Igor Andreev, who won here in 2005, went through when Lu Yen-Hsun of Taiwan retired with an ankle injury after losing the first set 6-2.
Monday’s results (prefix number denotes seeding):
Men’s singles:
First round: 2-Igor Andreev (Russia) bt Lu Yen-Hsun (Taiwan) 6-2 — Lu retired; Fabrice Santoro (France) bt Yuri Schukin (Kazakhstan) 4-6, 7-6 (7-2), 6-4; Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (Spain) bt Nicolas Devilder (France) 6-2, 6-4; Jeremy Chardy (France) bt Potito Starace (Italy) 3-6, 6-1, 6-4.
Women’s singles:
First round: Dominika Cibulkova (Slovakia) bt Marion Bartoli (France) 6-1, 4-1 — Bartoli retired; Amelie Mauresmo (France) bt Alize Cornet (France) 6-7 (3-7), 6-3, 6-4; Vera Dushevina (Russia) bt Nicole Vaidisova (Czech Republic) 6-1, 3-6, 6-3.
KARLOVIC UPSET
VIENNA: Former world No 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero upset fourth seeded Croat Ivo Karlovic 6-4, 7-6 on Monday to advance to the second round of the Austrian Open.
Although Karlovic added a further 17 aces to the 848 he had already fired this season, the rest of his game could not match the standard shown by his Spanish opponent.
Fifth seeded Spaniard Fernando Verdasco overcame Romanian qualifier Victor Crivoi 6-4, 6-4, and he will next play Guillermo Canas of Argentina, who earned a welcome 7-6, 6-3 victory over Italy’s Andreas Seppi.
Czech qualifier Jan Hernych edged past Roko Karanusic 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 to set up a second round clash with top seed Stanislas Wawrinka, and there were also victories for Spaniards Carlos Moya and Feliciano Lopez.
Moya defeated Germany”s Michael Berrer 7-6, 7-6, and Lopez overcame Agustin Calleri of Argentina 7-6, 7-6.
Top seed Wawrinka, second seed Fernando Gonzalez of Chile and Argentine third seed Juan Martin Del Potro this week all have the chance to move into the eighth spot in the Race for the Tennis Masters Cup.
The top eight players will compete in the season-ending event in Shanghai, which takes place between Nov 9 and 16.
Results:
First round: Carlos Moya (Spain) bt Michael Berrer (Germany) 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-6); Feliciano Lopez (Spain) bt Agustin Calleri (Argentina) 7-6 (7-2), 7-6 (7-4); Juan Carlos Ferrero (Spain) bt 4-Ivo Karlovic (Croatia) 6-4, 7-6 (7-4); Jan Hernych (Czech Republic) bt Roko Karanusic (Croatia) 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5); Guillermo Canas (Argentina) bt Andreas Seppi (Italy) 7-6 (7-2), 6-3; 5-Fernando Verdasco (Spain) bt Victor Crivoi (Romania) 6-4, 6-4.—Agencies
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