Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova crumbled in the first round of the US Open on Sunday, as Maria Sharapova showed her championship mettle with a battling victory. Kvitova tumbled out of the tournament at the hands of unheralded Romanian Alexandra Dulgheru while Sharapova - who she beat for the Wimbledon crown - eked out a three-set win over British teenager Heather Watson.
On the men's side, third-seeded Roger Federer secured a 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 victory over Colombian Santiago Giraldo, although he was far from his fluent best. Kvitova, ranked seventh in the world and seeded fifth, made 52 unforced errors in a 7-6 (7/3), 6-3 defeat to 48th-ranked Dulgheru.
Meanwhile Sharapova battled back from a set and a break down to beat Watson 3-6, 7-5, 6-3. It was another post-Wimbledon disappointment for Kvitova, the 21-year-old Czech who has been unable to build on her Grand Slam breakthrough. "It's something new for me," Kvitova said of the pressure of carrying the title of Grand Slam champion into a tournament.
In an erratic showing, Sharapova made 58 unforced errors, but notched 41 winners helping her remain unbeaten in a dozen three-set matches this season. "The best thing about this match is I gave myself a chance to play another one," Sharapova said. Federer did the same, and while he wasn't at his sharpest in the early going the outcome was never in doubt against the 54th-ranked Giraldo, who has failed to beat a top-10 player.
Federer acknowledged that it wasn't his best tennis, but said it didn't have to be. A five-time US Open champion, Federer won the most recent of his 16 Grand Slam titles at the 2010 Australian Open, and he needs a triumph here to extend his streak of eight consecutive seasons with at least one Grand Slam crown.
Mardy Fish, playing his first Grand Slam as the top-ranked American, opened the action at the Arthur Ashe stadium, where he beat Germany's Tobias Kamke 6-2, 6-2, 6-1. Fish next faces Malek Jaziri, a qualifier ranked 184th in the world who became the first Tunisian to win a Grand Slam match when he beat Dutchman Thimeo de Bakker 4-6, 6-1, 6-4, 6-2. Colombian Alejandro Falla, ranked 119th in the world, survived three match points to topple 15th-seeded Serbian Viktor Troicki 3-6, 6-3, 4-6, 7-5, 7-5.
France's Gael Monfils, the seventh seed, advanced with a hard-fought 7-6 (7/4), 6-3, 6-4 victory over Grigor Dimitrov. Tuesday sees top-seeded Djokovic and Nadal in action, while world number one Caroline Wozniacki and 13-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams headline the action on the women's side.
Serena's sister Venus Williams, who is unseeded after a season spent largely on the sidelines, advanced with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Russian Vesna Dolonts. Zvonareva defeated France's Stephanie Foretz-Gacon 6-3, 6-0. Bartoli beat Russian Alexandra Panova 7-5, 6-3, and Stosur beat Sweden's Sofia Arvidsson 6-2, 6-3. China's 13th-seeded Peng Shuai defeated American Varvara Lepchenko 6-3, 6-4 and 12th-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland beat her younger sister Urszula Radwanska 6-2, 6-3. Results on Monday, the first day of the US Open tennis championships (x denotes seeding):
Men (1st round): Alexandr Dolgopolov (UKR x22) bt Frederico Gil (POR) 6-4, 6-2, 7-5; Flavio Cipolla (ITA) bt Kei Nishikori (JPN) 6-4, 6-2 - retired; Ivo Karlovic (CRO) bt Fernando Gonzalez (CHI) 6-4, 6-4, 7-6 (7/3); Richard Gasquet (FRA x13) bt Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR) 6-4, 6-4, 6-0; Tomas Berdych (CZE x9) bt Romain Jouan (FRA) 6-2, 7-6 (7/4), 6-1; Fabio Fognini (ITA) bt Horacio Zeballos (ARG) 5-7, 6-4, 7-6 (7/5), 6-4; Philipp Petzschner (GER) bt Albert Ramos (ESP) 7-5, 6-7 (2/7), 6-3, 6-7 (5/7), 6-3; Janko Tipsarevic (SRB x20) bt Augustin Gensse (FRA) 6-2, 7-5, 6-0; Marcel Granollers (ESP x31) bt Xavier Malisse (BEL) 6-4, 6-4, 6-4; Mikhail Kukushkin (KAZ) bt Albert Montanes (ESP) 7-5, 6-2, 3-6, 7-6 (7/5); Bernard Tomic (AUS) bt Michael Yani (USA) 6-3, 6-4, 6-4; Marin Cilic (CRO x27) bt Ryan Harrison (USA) 6-2, 7-5, 7-6 (8/6); Radek Stepanek (CZE x23) bt Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER) 6-4, 6-1, 6-3; Juan Monaco (ARG) bt Andreas Seppi (ITA) 7-6 (7/1), 6-2, 6-2; Tommy Haas (GER) bt Jonathan Dasnieres de Veigy (FRA) 6-3, 6-4, 6-7 (5/7), 6-1; Michael Llodra (FRA x29) bt Victor Hanescu (ROM) 6-2, 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2; Kevin Anderson (RSA) bt Go Soeda (JPN) 6-1, 6-3, 6-0; Malek Jaziri (TUN) bt Thiemo de Bakker (NED) 4-6, 6-1, 6-4, 6-2; Mardy Fish (USA x8) bt Tobias Kamke (GER) 6-2, 6-2, 6-1; Alejandro Falla (COL) bt Viktor Troicki (SRB x15) 3-6, 6-3, 4-6, 7-5, 7-5; Gael Monfils (FRA x7) bt Grigor Dimitrov (BUL) 7-6 (7/4), 6-3, 6-4; Juan Carlos Ferrero (ESP) bt Pablo Andujar (ESP) 1-6, 7-5, 5-7, 6-1, 6-3; Roger Federer (SUI x3) bt Santiago Giraldo (COL) 6-4, 6-3, 6-2
Women (1st round): Alexandra Dulgheru (ROM) bt Petra Kvitova (CZE x5) 7-6 (7/3), 6-3; Monica Niculescu (ROM) bt Patricia Mayr (AUT) 6-3, 6-3; Madison Keys (USA) bt Jill Craybas (USA) 6-2, 6-4; Lucie Safarova (CZE x27) bt Magdalena Rybarikova (SVK) 2-6, 6-3, 6-2; Agnieszka Radwanska (POL x12) bt Urszula Radwanska (POL) 6-2, 6-3; Peng Shuai (CHN x13) bt Varvara Lepchenko (USA) 6-3, 6-4; Tsvetana Pironkova (BUL) bt Virginie Razzano (FRA) 6-2, 6-3; Laura Pous (ESP) bt Misaki Doi (JPN) 6-2, 6-7 (12/14), 5-2 - retired; Julia Goerges (GER x19) bt Kristina Barrois (GER) 6-3, 6-2; Anastasiya Yakimova (BLR) bt Noppawan Lertcheewakarn (THA) 6-0, 4-6, 6-3; Maria Sharapova (RUS x3) bt Heather Watson (GBR) 3-6, 7-5, 6-3; Dominika Cibulkova (SVK x14) bt Zhang Shuai (CHN) 6-3, 6-4; Marion Bartoli (FRA x8) bt Alexandra Panova (RUS) 7-5, 6-3; Maria Kirilenko (RUS x25) bt Ekaterina Makarova (RUS) 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (7/3); Irina Falconi (USA) bt Klara Zakopalova (CZE) 3-6, 6-4, 6-2; Anabel Medina Garrigues (ESP x30) bt Karin Knapp (ITA) 6-7 (4/7), 6-4, 6-3; Laura Robson (GBR) bt Ayumi Morita (JPN) 7-6 (7/5), 1-0 - retired; Kateryna Bondarenko (UKR) bt Lucie Hradecka (CZE) 6-3, 6-0; Vera Zvonareva (RUS x2) bt Stephanie Foretz-Gacon (FRA) 6-3, 6-0; Nadia Petrova (RUS x24) bt Chan Yung-Jan (TPE) 6-3, 1-6, 6-4; Romina Oprandi (ITA) bt Melanie Oudin (USA) 6-0, 7-6 (7/9); Vera Dushevina (RUS) bt Anastasija Sevastova (LAT) 6-3, 6-4; Samantha Stosur (AUS x9) bt Sofia Arvidsson (SWE) 6-2, 6-2; Venus Williams (USA) bt Vesna Dolonts (RUS) 6-4, 6-3; Christina McHale (USA) bt Aleksandra Wozniak (CAN) 6-3, 6-7 (5/7), 6-4; Polona Hercog (SLO) bt Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA) 6-1, 6-3; Alla Kudryavtseva (RUS) bt Anastasia Rodionova (AUS) 7-6 (7/1), 7-5.
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