Top seed Amelie Mauresmo overcame a strong challenge from Eleni Daniilidou of Greece, winning 6-2, 7-6 (7/3) to reach the quarterfinals of the J and S Cup on Thursday.
"I'm satisfied with the way I played today," said the world number three from France.
PHOTO: EPA
"It's never easy in the first match. I felt okay on the court and my game is coming together and I'm adjusting to the European clay court."
The match was always going to be a difficult one for Mauresmo. Daniilidou has been in good form this year, retaining her title in Auckland and then recently reaching the semifinals in Miami, and she provided a good test for the defending champion.
She was extremely persistent and Mauresmo found it almost impossible to out-rally her, especially in the second set. In the first, Daniilidou was let down by her serve. She paid the price for three double-faults in the second game as Mauresmo broke to take a 2-0 lead, but Danillidou responded by breaking back in the fifth game with a fine backhand winner.
Mauresmo, however, replied with a backhand winner of her own to break again for 4-2, and Daniilidou conceded the set with her fourth double-fault.
The second set was more closely contested, as Daniilidou reduced her errors and at one stage won eight consecutive points. After each player had broken serve twice, Daniilidou then served for the set after breaking again to lead 5-4. But she failed to take advantage of her opportunity to extend the match to a third set, dropped her serve, and made little impression in the tiebreak.
"She played a good match and she made it tough in the second set," said Mauresmo.
"At the beginning she was giving me a few free points, and in the second set that didn't happen anymore and she was reading the game pretty well."
Although Daniilidou provided stern competition, Mauresmo found the match a valuable experience as she tested her fitness. As well as having to default her Australian Open quarterfinal against Fabiola Zuluaga in January, she recently withdrew from the Charleston event because of continuing problems with her back. She has even changed her service technique, not only to make it more effective but to ease the strain on her back.
"It's good to have these kind of matches and stay on court a little longer and make sure physically your game is good," she said.
"My back was a little bit tight today, but not to the point that it was in Australia."
In other second round matches, third seed Vera Zvonareva beat Lenka Nemeckova 6-1, 6-3, and ninth seed Francesca Schiavone set up a meeting with Mauresmo by overcoming Elena Bovina 6-2, 6-3.
Fourth seed Svetlana Kuznetsova needed just 40 minutes to overwhelm Vera Douchevina 6-0, 6-1, sixth seed Silvia Farina Elia struggled before getting the better of Polish wild card Marta Domachowska 6-4, 4-6, 6-4, and Magdalena Maleeva will meet Venus Williams after upsetting seventh seed Patty Schnyder 5-7, 6-2, 6-3.
Barcelona Open
Argentine Gaston Gaudio swept to a 6-4 6-4 victory over defending champion Carlos Moya in the third round of the Barcelona Open on Thursday.
In the quarterfinals Gaudio will face three-times French Open champion Gustavo Kuerten of Brazil, who defeated Argentina's Guillermo Canas 6-3 6-7 6-3.
Kuerten built up a 5-0 lead in the first set but Canas fought back, winning the second set in a tiebreak, only for the Brazilian to take the third with the help of his trademark powerful baseline shots.
Moya, the Spanish No. 2 seed, struggled to find his rhythm after Gaudio, Barcelona champion in 2002, consolidated an early break of serve to claim the first set.
Moya fought back from 3-1 down in the second set but was unable to peg back his 13th-seeded opponent and failed to win a single point in the last game of the match.
Gaudio adapted better to courts slowed by rain, which had delayed the start of play for four hours. He also took full advantage of his strong service, which Moya was unable to threaten.
"I am a bit sad to lose in Barcelona," Moya said. "Above all, because I was the defending champion, but one of the good things about tennis is that next week you have a new tournament and you can't go to pieces."
Argentine number three seed David Nalbandian eased his way to a 6-4 6-4 victory over Spanish wild card Marc Lopez but countryman Mariano Zabaleta went out 7-6 3-6 6-2 to fifth-seeded Chilean Fernando Gonzalez.
Overall however it was a good day for Argentines, who secured three quarter-final slots in the US$1.17 million claycourt tournament after number seven seed Agustin Calleri secured a relaxed 6-3 7-5 victory over Spaniard Feliciano Lopez.
On-form wildcard Spaniard Albert Montanes, who beat former French Open champion Albert Costa in the first round, also powered through to the last eight with a 6-3 6-2 defeat of countryman Alberto Martin.
Spanish number eight seed and Moya's Davis cup team mate, Tommy Robredo, had a harder task getting through to the next round but fought his way to a 6-4 7-5 6-4 victory over Fernando Verdasco.
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