Mason, OH (Sports Network) - Tenth seed Mardy Fish was an easy winner, while
his fellow American Andy Roddick came up an opening-round loser Tuesday at the
$2.825 million Western & Southern Open.
The two-time Cincinnati runner-up Fish blitzed Spanish left-hander Feliciano
Lopez 6-2, 6-3, while the 16th-seeded Roddick succumbed to French lucky-loser
Jeremy Chardy 7-6 (7-4), 6-3 on the hardcourts at the Lindner Family Tennis
Center. Roddick required the services of a trainer while leading 2-1 in the
second set for an apparent back problem.
Fish reached finals here in 2003 and 2010, while Roddick captured Cincinnati
titles in 2003 and 2006 and was the runner-up in 2005.
Fourteenth-seeded Japanese Kei Nishikori avoided a first-round upset by
whipping Spaniard Marcel Granollers 6-1, 6-2, while former Australian Open
runner-up Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus upended 11th-seeded Colombian Alejandro
Falla 6-4, 6-1 on Day 3.
A Tuesday second-round result saw Aussie Bernard Tomic take out American wild
card Brian Baker 6-4, 6-3.
American wild card Sam Querrey reached the second round with a 4-6, 6-2, 6-4
victory over struggling Austrian Jurgen Melzer. Querrey titled on a hardcourt
in Los Angeles last month.
Querrey's second-round opponent will be Olympic gold medalist and Wimbledon
runner-up Andy Murray, this week's third seed and defending champion. The two-
time Cincy titlist Murray beat Novak Djokovic in last year's marquee finale
here.
In other opening-round play, German Tommy Haas saved a match point before
sneaking past fellow former top-five star David Nalbandian of Argentina 6-7
(0-7), 7-6 (7-4), 6-3 in 3 hours, 22 minutes, Argentine Carlos Berlocq topped
Colombian fellow South American Santiago Giraldo 7-5, 6-3, and Russian Alex
Bogomolov Jr. dropped Finnish veteran Jarkko Nieminen 6-4, 6-3.
This week's top seed is Wimbledon champion and Olympic silver medalist Roger
Federer, who will open his latest Cincinnati stay against Bogomolov. The Swiss
great captured this event in 2005, 2007, 2009 and 2010.
This seventh of nine ATP Masters tournaments will pay its 2012 champ $535,600.
The Sports Network