Washington, DC - Chilean Paul Capdeville and Czech Jan Hernych both advanced in the first round at the $600,000 Legg Mason Tennis Classic on Monday.
Capdeville bounced back from a first set loss to beat Serbian Ilia Bozoljac 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 on the hardcourts at FitzGerald Tennis Center.
Hernych had an easy time as he advanced after Australian Nathan Healey retired in the second set. Hernych won the first set 6-3 while the second set was tied 1-1 when Healey called it quits with a left rib injury.
Hernych next faces world No. 1 Marat Safin, the No. 3 seed this week
Wild Card Slovakian Martin Klizan knocked out Greece’s Konstantinos Economidis 6-4, 6-3 while Swede Thomas Johansson overcame a tough challenge to defeat Colombian teenager Santiago Giraldo 7-6 (9-7), 6-7 (7-5), 6-4.
Johansson will next face France’s Arnaud Clement, who beat Englishman Andy Murray in last year’s final here.
Robin Haase, of the Netherlands, defeated Great Britian’s Alex Bogdanovic in straight sets 6-4, 6-2.
In other action, Russian Evgeny Korolev easily handled Brazilian Ricardo Mello 6-4, 6-4 and Korolev’s countryman Igor Kunitsyn came back to down France’s Sebastien Grosjean 6-7 (3-7), 6-4, 6-3.
The final match on Monday saw Colombian Alejandro Falla down American Robert Kendrick 3-6, 6-2, 7-5.
This week’s top seed is American Andy Roddick, who titled here in 2001 and 2005.
