WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina: Top-seeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga launched his campaign at the ATP’s Winston-Salem hardcourt tournament with a 6-3, 7-6 (7/3) victory over Thomaz Bellucci on Tuesday.
Tsonga, ranked sixth in the world, converted just one of his nine break point opportunities, but saved all five that he faced to beat the Brazilian in a match lasting one hour 49 minutes.
Tsonga, who also beat Bellucci at the London Olympics, was one of 16 seeded players to enjoy a first-round bye. In the third round he’ll face Ukrainian qualifier Sergiy Stakhovsky, a 6-2, 6-3 winner over Spain’s Pablo Andujar.
Second-seeded Czech Tomas Berdych, who like Tsonga is appearing for the first time at this US Open tune-up event, needed just 95 minutes to oust Russian Alex Bogomolov 6-3, 7-5.
Berdych will next play Finland’s Jarkko Nieminen, who beat German qualifier Benjamin Becker 6-3, 6-3.
Defending champion and third seed John Isner of the United States shook off a slow start to beat 50th-ranked Slovakian Martin Klizan 4-6, 6-3, 7-5.
“The first one is normally the toughest,” said Isner, ranked 10th in the world.
Isner gained the decisive break for a 6-5 lead in the third set and wrapped up the victory in two hours and two minutes.
Fourth-seeded Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov lost only 10 points on his serve and fired eight aces en route to a 6-1, 6-3 victory over Taiwan’s Lu Yen-Hsun.
Another seeded casualty was No. 11 Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan, who fell to Belgian Steve Darcis 6-2, 6-2.
Sixth-seeded Marcel Granollers of Spain and No. 7 Sam Querrey of the United States both advanced.
Granollers defeated American Ryan Harrison 6-4, 6-2, while Querrey dispatched Colombian Santiago Giraldo 6-3, 6-2 in a match that had been suspended on Monday night because of rain.
Jankovic leads seeds into Texas quarterfinals
In Dallas, Texas, second-seeded Jelena Jankovic and No. 3 Roberta Vinci advanced to the quarter-finals Tuesday at the WTA Texas Open, a tune-up event for next week’s US Open in New York.
Jankovic, the former world No. 1 from Serbia, defeated Arantxa Rus of the Netherlands 7-6 (7/5), 6-2 to line up a quarter-final clash against eighth-seeded Sorana Cirstea of Romania, a 6-1, 7-5 winner over France’s Alize Cornet.
Italy’s Vinci encountered little resistance in a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Slovakia’s Polona Hercog. She’ll face seventh-seeded Chanelle Scheepers of South Africa, who beat New Zealand’s Marina Erakovic 6-4, 7-6 (7/3).
Vinci, who won the last three games to close out her match, said she was feeling confident with the US Open due to start on Monday on the hard courts of Flushing Meadows. Fourth-seeded Belgian Yanina Wickmayer was a second-round casualty, falling to Australian Casey Dellacqua 6-4, 6-3. Dellacqua, a qualifier, will face unseeded Canadian Aleksandra Wozniak who beat compatriot Eugenie Bouchard 6-2, 6-2.
Sixth-seeded Peng Shuai of China moved safely through with a 6-4, 6-2 victory over France’s Pauline Parmentier.
Peng will face wild card Bojana Jovanovski of Serbia, who beat Croatian Mirjana Lucic 7-6 (7/5), 6-2.
Radwanska out
with injury
In New Haven, Connecticut, top seed Agnieszka Radwanska retired from her opening match at the WTA’s New Haven Open Tuesday with a sore right shoulder.
Qualifier Olga Govortsova of Belarus was leading their second-round contest 6-0 and 2-1 when Poland’s Radwanska, the Wimbledon runner-up, called it a day. Radwanska, who enjoyed a first-round bye, had received treatment on the shoulder after the first set.
Govortsova advanced to a quarterfinal clash with Russian seventh seed Maria Kirilenko, who advanced on a walkover when Germany’s Mona Barthel withdrew before their scheduled match with a stomach ailment.
Earlier, French Open finalist Sara Errani and former Wimbledon runner-up Marion Bartoli booked a quarter-final meeting.
Italy’s Errani, the fourth seed, defeated Spain’s Carla Suarez Navarro 6-4, 6-3, while fifth-seeded Bartoli of France survived a scare to beat American Sloane Stephens 6-1, 0-6, 6-3.
Bartoli trailed 0-3 in the third but won the next six games to advance in the US Open tune-up event.
Despite the mountain facing her in the third, Bartoli said she never lost heart.
Stephens, however, stormed back, winning the first game of the second set and breaking Bartoli in the next as the French player double-faulted twice.
Bartoli’s serve was a weak spot throughout the second set, in which she double-faulted six times.
First-round action concluded Tuesday as China’s Zheng Jie defeated Bulgarian Tsvetana Pironkova 7-5, 6-2 to set up a second-round match with eighth-seeded Czech Lucie Safarova.
