Fifth-seeded Andreas Seppi defeated Robin Haase 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 to reach the second round of the Zagreb Indoors on Tuesday.
Seppi, who beat Roger Federer in the third round of the Australian Open last month, converted three out of six break points and won all 12 points on his first serve in the deciding set.
The Italian played solidly from the baseline and returned aggressively, pushing Haase to the limit in his service games in the third set.
Earlier, Russia’s Mikhail Youzhny came from a break down in the final set to beat Blaz Kavcic of Slovenia 6-3, 1-6, 6-4.
Sixth-seeded Youzhny, the 2012 singles and doubles champion in Zagreb, was 4-3 down facing Kavcic on serve before rallying for his first singles victory this year. He lost in the opening rounds in Doha and the Australian Open.
“It was up and down for me, I made too many mistakes in the second set, but finally found the way,” said Youzhny, who won his last match in Moscow in October last year.
Serbia’s Viktor Troicki, seeded seventh, came through a tough encounter with Ukrainian qualifier Ilya Marchenko, winning 4-6, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (3). A semi-finalist in Zagreb in 2009, Troicki wasted a match point at 5-4.
“It happens sometimes,” he said. “I even served very solid in that game, but he responded with some great returns.”
Another former Zagreb champion, Marcos Baghdatis, needed three sets to overcome Croatian wild-card Toni Androic, who was playing his first ATP World Tour match. The 2007 champion won 6-7 (3), 6-2, 6-3, but was not pleased with the level of his tennis.
“I did not play very well, I am very tired. I gave a lot mentally in Australia, and I don’t know if it was good decision to come here, but I will try to do my best,” said Baghdatis, who lost to Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov in the third round of the Australian Open.
Damir Dzumhur of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Japan’s Go Soeda also advanced.
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