Mauresmo advances to 2nd round at French Open

[May 28, 2008]  PARIS (AP) -- Amelie Mauresmo took what amounted to a three-hour lunch break during her match at the French Open.

That was fine with her: She's used to long rain delays at major tournaments by now.

"Maybe at the beginning, when you're very young, you kind of don't know really what to do and maybe get a little bit too excited," said Mauresmo, who overcame a some shaky periods and a weather interruption to beat Olga Savchuk 7-5, 4-6, 6-1 in the first round. "But now I guess I'm doing OK."

Mauresmo, seeded 22nd, was one of only 13 people to complete a match Tuesday at Roland Garros, where rain affected play for the third straight day.

After a delay of 2 hours, 50 minutes at the start of the day, No. 4 Svetlana Kuznetsova and No. 13 Dinara Safina reached the second round before the wet weather returned. The second delay lasted nearly three hours.

Only five men advanced to the second round Tuesday, including No. 4 Nikolay Davydenko and No. 9 Stanislas Wawrinka. No. 13 Juan Monaco lost to Robin Soderling of Sweden 6-2, 6-3, 6-1.

Three-time defending champion Rafael Nadal, who was originally scheduled to play his first match Monday, managed to play only two games against Thomaz Bellucci before rain suspended play with the score 1-1. He was to resume his match Wednesday.

Top-seeded Maria Sharapova's match against Evgeniya Rodina never started, but she was scheduled to be first on center court Wednesday. Serena Williams and Ana Ivanovic were to play in the second round.

Mauresmo, who missed both the Italian and German Opens because of a rib injury, has never gotten past the quarterfinals at Roland Garros. On Tuesday, she was broken in her first two service games, and then again while serving for the first set at 5-4.

"I need to improve my serve," said Mauresmo, who had nine double-faults. "I have kind of a small fear somewhat, so I have to get rid of that. I hope that with this match I can overcome all these mental fears I have."

In the second set, Savchuk jumped to a 2-0 lead, but Mauresmo got back to 2-2 before the rain came. When they came back on court, each player held serve until Savchuk broke the 2006 Wimbledon and Australian Open champion while leading 5-4.

Mauresmo, who finished the match with 35 unforced errors, dominated the third set by winning four straight games at the start.

"The third set was totally different from the others, that's for sure," Mauresmo said. "In the middle of the second set, after we came back after the break because of the rain, I felt a bit down. I probably ill-managed my food intake."

Mauresmo finds it easier to get through rain delays at Wimbledon, where she stays in a house near the All England Club.

"I'm just walking distance," Mauresmo said.

Safina beat Kateryna Bondarenko of Ukraine 6-1, 6-3, and Kuznetsova defeated Aiko Nakamura of Japan 6-2, 6-3 before the rain interrupted play.

"I was first. I was lucky with that," said Kuznetsova, the 2004 U.S. Open champion. "I get in my match, so I have the rest of the day to relax, to take it easy, and tomorrow I practice and get prepared for my next match."

On the men's side, Davydenko beat 2002 Australian Open champion Thomas Johansson 6-3, 6-3, 6-3, and Wawrinka defeated Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-3, 6-4, 6-3.

"It's never easy, a whole day of rain," Wawrinka said. "Most important is to remain calm, not to stress yourself uselessly, and to be patient."

[Associated Press; By CHRIS LEHOURITES]

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