PARIS, 30 October 2003 — Wimbledon champion Roger Federer, playing at half pace to nurse his bad back, eased into the last 16 of the Paris Masters yesterday by beating Thierry Ascione 7-6, 6-1.

Another French qualifier, Gregory Carraz, upset 11th seed Sjeng Schalken 6-4, 2-6, 6-3.

Federer, in a three-way tussle with world number one Juan Carlos Ferrero and Andy Roddick to finish top of the end-year rankings, spent the first set testing out his back which he injured during the Swiss Indoors last week. But once he realized it would give him few problems, the Swiss third seed took firm control of the second set as Ascione crumbled.

Ascione, ranked 106th in the world, hit a stream of winners from the baseline but the 22-year-old was unable to maintain the momentum in the first-set tiebreak and let the opportunity slip away.

Three netted Federer volleys gave Ascione a 5-4 lead in the tiebreak. Yet three points later, after a Federer ace and two mistakes by the home favorite, the set was gone.

Two of the most improved players of 2003, Rainer Schuettler and Guillermo Coria, joined Federer in the last 16.

Fifth seed Schuettler muddled past American James Blake 4-6, 6-2, 6-3.

Argentina’s Coria, fresh from winning the Swiss title last weekend, beat Spain’s Feliciano Lopez 6-3, 3-6, 6-3.

Jonas Bjorkman of Sweden benefited from the withdrawal of sixth seed David Nalbandian to oust the Argentine’s replacement, lucky loser Nicolas Lapentti, 6-4, 6-1.

Spain’s Felix Mantilla became the first seed to be ousted, the 15th seed losing 7-5, 7-6 to Andrei Pavel. The Romanian next plays fourth seed Coria.

Like Coria, Schuettler has already booked his spot in Houston next month but he struggled in the first set against Blake, who had numerous chances to break the German’s serve but took only two.

The American broke for 5-4 and won the set with an ace, before losing the first four games of the second while trying, and failing, to hit the cover off the balls.

Raymond Upsets Zvonareva

at Philly WTA

In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Vera Zvonareva’s chances of qualifying for the WTA Tour Championships took a heavy hit Tuesday as she suffered a first-round loss to American Lisa Raymond at the $585,000 Advanta Championships.

Ranked a career-high 12th in the world, Zvonareva was one of five players vying for three spots in the exclusive season-ending tournament. But the sixth-seeded Russian uncharacteristically bowed out early with a 6-3, 2-6, 6-2 setback.

There were four matches Tuesday, all involving Americans. One day after going 1-2, Americans went 3-1. No. 9 Meghann Shaughnessy, the only other seed in action, breezed past Anna-Lena Groenefeld of Germany 6-3, 6-2. She is seeking her second title of the season, having won in January at Canberra.

Unseeded Alexandra Stevenson rallied past Silvija Talaja of Croatia 4-6, 6-3, 7-5. She has won the last three meetings between the players. American Teryn Ashley suffered a 6-2, 3-6, 7-6 (7-2) loss to Australia’s Nicole Pratt, who advanced to a second-round meeting with third-seeded Russian Anastasia Myskina, who received a first-round bye.