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Copa Claro Results

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina - Results Wednesday from the Copa Claro, a $484,100 ATP event on outdoor clay courts at the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club (seedings in parentheses):

Stanislas Wawrinka (6), Switzerland, def. Benoit Paire, France, 6-3, 5-7, 6-2.

WTA Dubai Championships Results

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - Results Wednesday from the Dubai Championships, a $2 million WTA Tour event at Dubai Tennis Stadium (seedings in parentheses):

Agnieszka Radwanska (5), Poland, def. Shahar Peer, Israel, 7-5, 6-4.

Jelena Jankovic (8), Serbia, def. Flavia Pennetta, Italy, 6-4, 6-2.

Sabine Lisicki (9), Germany, def. Iveta Benesova, Czech Republic, 6-3, 6-3.

Ana Ivanovic, Serbia, def. Maria Kirilenko, Russia, 6-2, 7-6 (4).

Samantha Stosur (4), Australia, def. Lucie Safarova, Czech Republic, 6-1, 6-7 (5), 6-1.

Julia Goerges, Germany, def. Casey Dellacqua, Australia, 6-0, 6-2.

Daniela Hantuchova, Slovakia, def. Shuai Peng, China, 7-5, 6-2.

Caroline Wozniacki (3), Denmark, def. Simona Halep, Romania, 6-2, 6-3.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Janko Tipsarevic, Ivan Ljubicic reach quarterfinals of Open 13

MARSEILLE, France - Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France and Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia won in straight sets Wednesday to advance to the quarterfinals of the Open 13.

The top-seeded Tsonga did not face any break points, winning 36 of his 41 service points to beat Nicolas Mahut 6-3, 6-2.

Tsonga took a 3-0 lead in the first set and broke Mahut twice in the second. He will next play Edouard Roger-Vasselin, who cruised past Flavio Cipolla of Italy 6-3, 6-0.

Roger-Vasselin won the last eight games and broke Cipolla three times in each set.

The third-seeded Tipsarevic saved six break points to oust Belgian qualifier David Goffin 6-4, 6-2.

Tipsarevic slammed an ace to take the first set and clinched victory with a forehand pass down the line. He will meet Ivan Ljubicic, who beat Karol Beck of Slovakia 6-4, 7-6 (1).

The seventh-seeded Croat cracked 15 aces. Beck was broken at 5-4 to lose the opening set before dropping the second on a tiebreaker.

In the first round, Alexandr Dolgopolov rallied to beat Lukas Rosol of the Czech Republic 2-6, 7-6 (1), 6-3. The sixth-seeded Ukrainian broke for a 3-1 lead in the final set and will next face Michael Llodra of France, who defeated Swiss qualifier Marco Chiudinelli 7-6 (2), 7-6 (3).

Llodra, a 2010 champion, had 12 aces in his victory.

Open 13 Results

MARSEILLE, France - Results Wednesday from the Open 13, an ATP tournament on indoor hard courts at Palais des Sports (seedings in parentheses):

Alexandr Dolgopolov (6), Ukraine, def. Lukas Rosol, Czech Republic, 2-6, 7-6 (1), 6-3.

Michael Llodra, France, def. Marco Chiudinelli, Switzerland, 7-6 (2), 7-6 (3).

Edouard Roger-Vasselin, France, def. Flavio Cipolla, Italy, 6-3, 6-0.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (1), France, def. Nicolas Mahut, France, 6-3, 6-2.

Janko Tipsarevic (3), Serbia, def. David Goffin, Belgium, 6-4, 6-2.

US Open champ Stosur, Wozniacki advance to 3rd round in Dubai; Azarenka withdraws with injury

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - U.S. Open champion Sam Stosur advanced to the third round of the Dubai Tennis Championships on Wednesday by defeating Lucie Safarova of the Czech Republic 6-1, 6-7 (5), 6-1.

Caroline Wozniacki also advanced Wednesday after the third-seeded Danish player opened her title defence by beating Romania's Simona Halep 6-2, 6-3.

Earlier Wednesday, top-ranked Victoria Azarenka pulled out of the Dubai tournament because of a left ankle injury. The Australian Open champion, who has won 17 straight matches so far this season, says she will rest for two or three days.

"Obviously it's very disappointing, but, I mean, it's life. It's sport. I just have to take care of it and that's it," Azarenka said. "I take a couple of days off just to see and hopefully it will settle down. ... But it has to be taken care of right away."

Azarenka injured her left ankle during last week's semifinal match at the Qatar Open. However, Azarenka shook off the injury to beat Stosur in the final.

In Dubai, the fourth-seeded Stosur of Australia broke Safarova twice in both the first and third sets, and saved all nine break points she faced in the match.

She will meet eight-seeded Jelena Jankovic of Serbia in the third round on Thursday. Jankovic defeated Italy's Flavia Pennetta 7-5, 6-4. Stosur and Jankovic last played in the quarterfinals in the 2011 Dubai tournament, with the Serb winning.

"Good chance for me to try and bounce back from that loss that I had against her," Stosur said, adding that Thursday's match will be one of those "where I think I've got to really step up and play aggressive and realize she's (Jankovic) not going to make too many errors."

Wozniacki will face Ana Ivanovic after the Serbian player defeated Maria Kirilenko of Russia, 6-2, 7-6 (4).

The ninth-seeded Sabine Lisicki of Germany also advanced after defeating Iveta Benesova of the Czech Republic 6-3, 6-3. Lisicki will play Agnieszka Radwanska in the third round, after the fifth-seeded Polish player defeated Israel's Shahar Peer 7-5, 6-4.

Azarenka said the packed tennis schedule and increasingly tough competition could be partly to blame for so many injuries among the players.

Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova, French Open winner Li Na and Vera Zvonareva have also pulled out the Dubai tournament because of injury and illness.

"For me, obviously I played so much, and it was an unfortunate situation what happened in Doha," Azarenka said. "But I mean, it's just the game became so physical. Sometimes it's really tough on the body week after week to play. For example, these tournaments back-to-back with such a tough field, it takes a lot out of you physically. It's just tough."

Wozniacki, who was ranked No. 1 until Azarenka unseated her last month by winning the Australian Open, said she hoped her Belarusian rival will recover from her injury after a good rest.

"Vika (Azarenka) has had a great start to the year. I'm sure her body is feeling very tired at the moment, and she needed the rest before Indian Wells," Wozniacki said. "You know, injuries happen in tennis. Just need to be happy when you're healthy."

Top-ranked Victoria Azarenka pulls out of Dubai because of ankle injury

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - Top-ranked Victoria Azarenka pulled out of the Dubai Tennis Championships on Wednesday because of a left ankle injury.

The 22-year-old Azarenka said she will rest for two or three days, hoping the ankle will heal. The Belarusian, who has won 17 straight matches so far this season, said she'll take a break from tennis and go home to spend some time with her family.

"Obviously it's very disappointing, but, I mean, it's life. It's sport. I just have to take care of it and that's it," Azarenka said. "I take a couple of days off just to see and hopefully it will settle down for as long that I don't need to take a scan or anything.

"But I just need to have my peace of mind and probably will still do the same just to make sure there is nothing really serious. But it has to be taken care of right away."

The 22-year-old Azarenka was the top top-seeded player at the Dubai tournament and was scheduled to play her opening match against Julia Goerges of Germany later Wednesday.

The Australia Open champion injured her left ankle during last week's semifinal match at the Qatar Open. However, Azarenka shook off the injury to win the Qatar Open on Sunday, beating Sam Stosur 6-1, 6-2.

It was the Belarusian's 17th straight victory and her first title since replacing Caroline Wozniacki at the top of the rankings after winning in Melbourne. The Doha victory was Azarenka's third title of 2012.

"Last week it (the ankle) was already hurt in the semifinal, and in the final I tried to do everything, you know, to be able to play. I took a lot of sacrifice by taking a lot of painkillers, but apparently didn't get better," Azarenka said. "I had to adjust my movement, compromise in the other parts of my body which started to hurt, and it's just too much of a risk."

Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova, French Open winner Li Na and Vera Zvonareva have also pulled out the Dubai tournament because of injury and illness.

A packed tennis schedule and tough competition could be partly to blame for so many injuries among the players, Azarenka said.

"For me, obviously I played so much, and it was an unfortunate situation what happened in Doha," Azarenka said. "But I mean, it's just the game became so physical. Sometimes it's really tough on the body week after week to play. For example, these tournaments back-to-back with such a tough field, it takes a lot out of you physically. It's just tough."

Dulgheru and Johansson lose in first round in Monterrey

MONTERREY, Mexico - Fourth-seeded Alexandra Dulgheru of Romania and No. 7-seeded Mathilde Johansson of France were knocked out of the first round of the Monterrery Open on Tuesday.

Dulgheru was beaten by Silvia Soler-Espinosa of Spain 6-3, 6-3, while Mathilde Jonansson lost to Mandy Minella of Luxembourg 6-1, 5-7, 7-6 (5).

Other seeded players fared better in the outdoor, hard-court event.

No. 6-seeded Greta Arn of Hungary beat Zhang Shuai of China 6-1, 6-4, and eighth-seeded Lourdes Dominguez Lino of Spain defeated Monica Puig of Puerto Rico 6-3, 6-3.

Other first-round winners included Frenchwoman Alize Cornet, Maria Abramovic of Croatia, Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan, Valeria Savinykh of Russia and Hungary's Timea Babos.

Led by Ferrer, top-seeded players move on to second round in Copa Claro

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina - Led by top-seed David Ferrer of Spain, seeded players had an easy day Tuesday as almost all moved through to the second round of the clay-court Copa Claro.

Ferrer had no trouble beating Argentine Andres Molteni 6-1, 6-0.

"I'm happy to get out of the first round, and I think he (Molteni) was a little nervous," Ferrer said.

Molteni had plenty of support from local fans, who were hoping for some revenge for Spain's victory over Argentina last year in the Davis Cup final at Seville, Spain.

"I like fans supporting the local players," Ferrer said. "It's the normal thing to do, and personally I like it."

No. 2 Nicolas Almagro of Spain advanced against Potito Starace of Italy 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4), and No. 3 Gilles Simon of France defeated Rui Machado of Portugal 6-3, 7-5.

No. 5 Juan Monaco of Argentina moved on when Filippo Volandri of Italy retired in the second set with an injury. Monaco was leading 6-1, 3-1.

Seventh-seeded Fernando Verdasco of Spain also reached the next round, beating Eric Prodon of France 6-4, 6-1.

The biggest upset came when eighth-seeded Juan Ignacio Chela of Argentina lost to Albert Ramos of Spain 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.

Home favourite David Nalbandian defeated Wayne Odesnik of the United States, 6-2, 6-3.

"Always playing at home is special," Nalbandian said. "It was a little windy out there today and the ball was moving around a bit."

In other matches, Benoit Paire of France defeated Javier Marti of Spain 2-6, 7-6 (0), 6-2, Igor Andreev of Russia won over Blaz Kavcic of Slovenia 6-2, 6-2 and Federico Delbonis of Argentina defeated Frederico Gil of Portugal, 6-2, 6-2.

Querrey rebounds after losing first set and beats Falla to advance in Memphis

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Top-seed John Isner, playing for the first time since helping the U.S. defeat Switzerland in Davis Cup, defeated Gilles Muller of Luxembourg, 7-6 (1), 7-6 (4) in the Regions Morgan Keegan Championships on Tuesday.

Isner, ranked a career-best No. 13 in the world, overpowered Muller with 26 aces, including five in the two tiebreakers. Isner also won 96 per cent of his first-serve points. The 26-year-old advances to the second round where he'll oppose American Donald Young.

"Even though I beat Roger (Federer), it was just one match," Isner said. "I think confidence comes from putting a string of match (wins) together. I haven't really played that many matches. This was just my seventh match of the year."

Isner's doubles partner, Sam Querrey advanced to the second round with a 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory against Alejandro Falla of Colombia on Tuesday.

Querrey underwent right elbow surgery in June and won for only the second time this year in five matches. His world ranking has dropped to 99th after peaking at No. 17 in January 2011.

"I feel pretty close," Querrey said of returning to match shape. "I'm missing more forehands than I usually do, but I'm just committed to stepping up and hitting it. More and more are falling (in) every day."

In other men's first-round matches, James Blake, participating in his first ATP Tour match since encountering knee problems late last fall, dropped a 6-0, 6-2 decision to fellow American Ryan Sweeting.

In a late match, top-seed John Isner, ranked a career-best No. 13 in the world, plays in the opening round against Gilles Muller. No. 2 seed Andy Roddick opens defence of his Memphis title Wednesday night.

Querrey's first-round victory added to his history of success in Memphis. He improved to 13-4 overall. He has advanced to at least the quarter-finals four of the past five times in Memphis.

Querrey survived falling behind a break in the third set and won with an ace, his 12th, on match point.

In the Memphis International, the accompanying Women's Tennis Association event, No. 2 seed and Russian-born Ksenia Pervak defeated Vancouver's Rebecca Marino, a finalist in last year's tournament, 6-2, 6-4, in first-round play.

Unseeded Varvara Lepchenko, who became a U.S. citizen in September, upset No. 7 seed Johanna Larsson of Sweden, 6-2, 6-4, to move into the third round along with No. 5 Pauline Parmentier of France. Parmentier defeated Andrea Hlavackova of the Czech Republic, 6-4, 4-6, 6-2.

Gilles Simon among seeded players who reach 2nd round of Copa Claro in Argentina

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina - Gilles Simon of France was among a trio of seeded players that easily advanced to the second round of the Copa Claro clay-court event on Tuesday in the Argentine captial.

The third-seeded Simon defeated Rui Machado of Portugal 6-3, 7-5, while No. 5 Juan Monaco of Argentina advanced when Filippo Volandri of Italy retired in the second set with an injury. Monaco was leading 6-1, 3-1.

No. 7 Fernando Verdasco of Spain also moved on, beating Eric Prodon of France 6-4, 6-1.

The biggest upset Tuesday was eighth-seeded Juan Ignacio Chela of Argentina's loss to Albert Ramos of Spain 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.

In other matches, Benoit Paire of France defeated Javier Marti of Spain 2-6, 7-6 (0), 6-2, and Igor Andreev of Russia won over Blaz Kavcic of Slovenia 6-2, 6-2.