Tennis: Open slather on moving targets

Fernando Gonzalez looked comfortable as he defended his Open title against Luis Horna yesterday. Picture / Dean Purcell

It was moving day at the Open yesterday - a third seed headed some place else, three qualifiers moved on to the second round, three Italians suffered stage fright and Wesley Moodie left one of the world's best in the lurch.

There was some business as usual - top seeds Fernando Gonzalez and David Ferrer had no problems in advancing and most matches were completed in straight sets - but the intrigue elsewhere added to Heineken Open lore.

Olympic champion Nicolas Massu beat fourth seed and two time Open champion Dominik Hrbaty 6-2, 6-4 in a thriller last night. He now plays Christophe Rochus this afternoon.

Third seed Robby Ginepri was the biggest casualty - bowing out to unseeded Spaniard world No 49 Alberto Martin in the day's only singles three-setter.

Ginepri served an ace in his first service game but nothing else. He then broke back immediately to love as Martin served two double faults.

The American held serve in the third game - but needed 26 serves to do it - as the pair settled into a see-saw affair decided in a tiebreaker.

Ginepri, best remembered for his five-set US Open semifinal loss to Andre Agassi, controlled the second set after breaking Martin in his first two service games, eventually taking it 6-3 in 29 minutes.

The third seed hardly yelped in the third set, winning only the fourth and fifth (on serve) games to crash out 2-6.

Qualifiers Ivo Minar and Jan Hernych (both Czech Republic) and Dutchman Raemon Sluiter took different routes to today's second round.

Hernych, a qualifier and semifinalist last year, beat Romanian Andrei Pavel in straight sets to book a second-round tie with sixth seed Olivier Rochus (Belgium). In another twist, it was Rochus who ended Hernych's run here last year.

Sluiter also spent minimum time on court in seeing off Italian Daniele Bracciali 6-3, 6-4 to book his match-up with second seed David Ferrer, who ended another Italian hope in thumping Federico Luzzi in two.

Minar spent even less time in the summer heat as he took a 2-1 lead over South African Moodie, who then cried off citing a shoulder injury which also forced him out of a scheduled night doubles match, leaving Indian doubles specialist Mahesh Bhupathi stranded.

Unseeded American Paul Goldstein also took the short route when Italian Filippo Volandri also quit - at 0-6, 1-3 - leaving Goldstein a second-round match with seventh seed Jarkko Nieminen, who wasted no time in beating Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis 6-2, 6-2.

In the match-up of the pocket battleships, Rochus, last year's beaten finalist, swept by Spain's Albert Montanes 6-2, 6-4.

"In the first set I was feeling really good but in the second I got a bit tired," said Rochus, a week short of his 25th birthday. He then went out and watched his older brother Christophe in his first-round match on an outside court. "I play to enjoy my game. I did that today. I hope I can get back on to centre court tomorrow. "

Christophe, 27, completed the family double with his win, also in straight sets, over Jose Acasuso to keep hopes of an all-brother semifinal alive.

Defending champion Gonzalez (Chile) celebrated the first match of his fifth visit to the ASB Tennis Centre with a clinical 6-3, 6-4 triumph over Peruvian qualifier Luis Horna. In an awesome display, Gonzalez gave Horna little.

"My serve was working well. Every moment I'm feeling better and better," said Gonzalez.

Today's schedule

Stadium court (from 11am): Q Raemon Sluiter v 2 David Ferrer followed by Andy Murray v 5 Mario Ancic, Christophe Rochus v Nicolas Massu, 1 Simon Aspelin/Todd Perry v Petr Pala/Pavel Vizner, followed by (not before 7pm) 1 Fernando Gonzalez v Q Ivo Minar, Christophe/Olivier Rochus v Jordan Kerr/Travis Parrott.

Court four (from noon): 7 Jarkko Nieminen v Paul Goldstein followed by 6 Olivier Rochus v Q Jan Hernych, Robert Lindstedt/Nieminen v Hrbaty/Jaroslav Levinsky.

Court six (from noon): Alberto Martin v Stanislas Wawrinka followed by Florian Mayer v Robin Vik.