He hit 11 aces but gave up eight double faults and lost his serve four times in his first match with Davis Cup teammate Becker, who won despite landing barely half of his first serves.
Top-seeded Andy Roddick beat Luxembourg qualifier Gilles Muller 6-4, 7-6 (4) in a first-round match.
In the women's Cellular South Cup, three-time Grand Slam champion Lindsay Davenport dispatched Russian Evgeniya Rodina 6-1, 6-1 to reach the quarter-finals on debut.
Third-seeded Shahar Peer of Israel, last year's runner-up, beat Melinda Czink of Hungary 6-0, 3-6, 6-2 to move on and play qualifier Marina Erakovic of New Zealand. The Kiwi reached her second career WTA quarter-final with a 7-5, 6-3 defeat of US wild card Amber Liu.
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