Davydenko maintains winning run at Estoril Open
The Russian, who won the Miami title little more than a week ago over Rafael Nadal, staged a comeback to defeat Czech Ivo Minar 2-6, 6-2, 6-4 at the Estadio Nacional.
He will on Friday face seventh seed Marc Gicquel, who beat fellow Frenchman Thierry Ascione 7-6, 6-3.
Elsewhere in the second round, Florent Serra put a second French player into the last eight as he beat Rui Machado 7-6, 6-1 a day after the local earned his first ATP career win as Ivo Karlovic retired injured.
Italian Flavio Cipolla upset fifth seed Gilles Simon 6-2, 5-3 as the French player retired with a back injury.
The women’s draw lost its top seed as former semi-finalist Flavia Pennetta crashed out to Czech Iveta Benesova 6-2, 6-2.
Italian third seed Karin Knapp, February’s Antwerp finalist, got a victory over Mariana Duque Marino of Colombia 6-3, 6-4 while French eighth seed Camille Pin reached the quarter-finals against Tsvetana Pironkova of Bulgaria 6-3, 6-4.
Wednesday’s results (prefix number denotes seeding):
Men’s singles:
Second round: 2-Nikolay Davydenko (Russia) bt Ivo Minar (Czech Republic) 2-6, 6-2, 6-4; Florent Serra (France) bt Rui Machado (Portugal) 7-6 (7-5), 6-1; Flavio Cipolla (Italy) bt 5-Gilles Simon (France) 6-2, 5-3 – Simon retired; 7-Marc Gicquel (France) bt Thierry Ascione (France) 7-6 (7-2), 6-3.
Women’s singles:
Second round: 3-Karin Knapp (Italy) bt Mariana Duque (Colombia) 6-3, 6-4; 6-Klara Zakopalova (Czech Republic) bt Corinna Dentoni (Italy) 6-4, 6-1; 8-Camille Pin (France) bt Tsvetana Pironkova (Bulgaria) 6-3, 6-4; Iveta Benesova (Czech Republic) bt 1-Flavia Pennetta (Italy) 6-2, 6-2.
EASY FOR TOP GUNS CHARLESTON (South Carolina): Top seed and holder Jelena Jankovic weathered a tight first set before crushing American qualifier Alexandra Stevenson 7-5, 6-0 in the Family Circle Cup second round on Wednesday.
Second-seeded Russian Maria Sharapova also cruised into the third round, brushing aside American Bethanie Mattek 6-0, 6-0 in an evening match.
Serbian world No 5 Jankovic, after initially struggling to cope with Stevenson’s unconventional backhand, took control to wrap up victory in one hour 22 minutes.
Jankovic next meets Russian Anastasia Rodionova, a 6-3, 6-4 winner over Aravane Rezai of France.
Sharapova needed less than an hour to demolish Mattek.
The elegant Russian converted all six break points to set up a likely quarter-final with fifth-seeded American Serena Williams.
Poland’s Agnieszka Radwanska, the 11th seed, battled from a set down to beat Edina Gallovits of Romania 6-7, 6-2, 7-5 in a fluctuating encounter lasting two-and-a-half hours.
Fourth seed Elena Dementieva of Russia swept past American Jill Craybas 6-0, 6-2 and seventh-seeded Swiss Patty Schnyder beat Olga Govortsova of Belarus 7-6, 6-0.
Ninth seed Vera Zvonareva of Russia hammered Spaniard Virginia Ruano Pascual 6-1, 6-0 and 13th-seeded Victoria Azarenka of Belarus won 7-6, 6-0 against China’s Sun Tiantian.
Results:
Second round: 2-Maria Sharapova (Russia) bt Bethanie Mattek (US) 6-0, 6-0; 11-Agnieszka Radwanska (Poland) bt Edina Gallovits (Romania) 6-7 (7-9), 6-2, 7-5; 12-Katarina Srebotnik (Slovenia) bt Barbora Zahlavova Strycova (Czech Republic) 4-6, 6-1, 7-5; Tatiana Perebiynis (Ukraine) bt Julia Schruff (Germany) 6-4, 6-3; 9-Vera Zvonareva (Russia) bt Virginia Ruano (Spain) 6-1, 6-0; Alize Cornet (France) bt Sara Errani (Italy) 6-3, 2-6, 6-3; 13-Victoria Azarenka (Belarus) bt Sun Tiantian (China) 7-6 (7-4), 6-0; 1-Jelena Jankovic (Serbia) bt Alexandra Stevenson (US) 7-5, 6-0; 7-Patty Schnyder (Switzerland) bt Olga Govortsova (Belarus) 7-6 (7-2), 6-0; Anastasia Rodionova (Russia) bt Aravane Rezai (France) 6-3, 6-4; 4-Elena Dementieva (Russia) bt Jill Craybas (US) 6-0, 6-2.
QUERRY OUSTED HOUSTON (Texas): Top seed James Blake eased into the U.S. Clay Court Championships second round but fellow American Sam Querrey, the fourth seed, made an early exit on Wednesday.
Blake, the world No 9, beat Japanese wildcard Kei Nishikori 6-4, 6-4 to set up a meeting with 15-year-old American Ryan Harrison, who had stunned Uruguay’s Pablo Cuevas 6-4, 6-3 in Monday’s first round to join Spaniard Rafael Nadal and Frenchman Richard Gasquet as the only players since 1990 to win ATP matches under the age of 16.
Big-serving Querrey squandered a 2-0 lead in the decisive set before losing 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 to Chilean Nicolas Massu in a tight contest lasting two hours, 48 minutes.
Massu, 28, next faces Brazil’s Marcos Daniel, a 6-3, 6-4 winner over Serb Viktor Troicki.
Third-seeded Mardy Fish crushed fellow American Hugo Armando 6-3, 6-2 to reach the third round.
Results:
Second round: 3-Mardy Fish (US) bt Hugo Armando (US) 6-3, 6-2; 8-Oscar Hernandez (Spain) bt Donald Young (US) 6-4, 6-4.
First round: 1-James Blake (US) bt Kei Nishikori (Japan) 6-4, 6-4; Nicolas Massu (Chile) bt 4-Sam Querrey (US) 5-7, 6-4, 6-4; Peter Luczak (Australia) bt Harel Levy (Israel) 6-4, 6-4; Paul Capdeville (Chile) bt Diego Hartfield (Argentina) 6-0, 6-4; Marcos Daniel (Brazil) bt Viktor Troicki (Serbia) 6-3, 6-4.—Agencies