Defending champion Kim Clijsters squandered leads in the first and final sets and lost her opening match at the Nasdaq-100 Open to Jill Craybas of the US 7-5, 3-6, 7-5 on Saturday.
Clijsters double-faulted 11 times and committed 78 unforced errors.
"It was sort of in my hands," said Clijsters, who was seeded second. "I was the one making the mistakes. I was just trying to do a little too much."
PHOTO: AP
The reigning US Open champion received a first-round bye and was playing for the first time since the Antwerp final on Feb. 19. She has yet to win a title this year while battling hip and ankle injuries.
"I'm a player who likes to play a lot of matches," Clijsters said. "That's something I'll have to build up again. The past few months, that has been a disadvantage. That's what I'm missing right now."
Defending men's champion Roger Federer lost seven consecutive points in a tiebreaker but overcame the uncharacteristic lapse and beat Arnaud Clement of France 6-2, 6-7 (4), 6-0.
The match was Federer's first with instant replay, which he has opposed in the past. He was successful on one of two challenges but was displeased when the system malfunctioned and was unavailable for one game.
"Obviously that's something that is not acceptable for us players, playing with our minds," he said. "Got to give it time, I guess."
Through Federer's match, 16 of 56 challenged calls have been reversed. The system is being used only on the stadium court.
Unseeded Tim Henman beat No. 13 Lleyton Hewitt for the first time in their nine meetings, 7-6 (5), 6-3. Henman acknowledged clearing a mental hurdle.
"As in so many of these situations in tennis and in sport, it's what goes on between the ears," he said.
No. 4 Maria Sharapova swept the last five games to beat Li Na of China 6-2, 6-4.
Craybas, ranked 54th, won the final four games of the opening set against Clijsters and overcame a 4-2 deficit in the last set. The victory was the biggest for the 31-year-old American since her upset of Serena Williams at Wimbledon last year.
"I actually had a lot of fun out there," Craybas said. "In the beginning I was trying to go for too much. Once I got over that, then I got into a groove."
Clijsters and Belgian compatriot Justine Henin-Hardenne -- who lost on Friday -- were eliminated in their opening matches at the same tournament for the first time since 1999.
Clijsters had never lost before the fourth round in five previous appearances at Key Biscayne. Last year she became the tournament's first unseeded female champion.
While her hasty departure was unprecedented on the women's side, 2004 men's champion Andy Roddick lost his opening match last year.
The top-seeded Federer was three points from victory leading 4-0 in the tiebreaker before Clement rallied with seven consecutive points to force a third set. Federer had been 8-0 in tiebreakers this year.
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