David Nalbandian advanced to the Madrid Masters’ third round on Tuesday, and last year’s runner-up believes he can supersede absent titleholder Marat Safin.
Fifth-seeded Nalbandian defeated Jurgen Melzer of Austria 7-6 (1), 6-3, and liked his chances of going the distance, despite a seeded quarterfinal with Andy Roddick and a possible final against world number two Rafael Nadal.
”I think I can win this sort of tournament,” Nalbandian said. ”If that happens, I will be close to the Masters Cup. That’s why I’m playing right now, to be able to get there.”
Nalbandian has played in the season-ending Masters Cup once before, in 2003. Four berths are still available for the November 7 to 13 championship in Shanghai, China.
Also on Tuesday, 2003 Madrid champion Juan Carlos Ferrero bowed to hard-serving Max Mirnyi of Belarus 7-5, 7-6 (2) in a first-round match, and another former French Open champ, Carlos Moya, beat Italy’s Filippo Volandri 6-1, 6-2.
Nalbandian was taken to a first-set tiebreaker by Melzer, and the Argentine took control early to win it 7-1.
”The advantage came with the tiebreak,” Nalbandian said. ”From that point, the match followed the path I wanted it to follow.”
Other seeds in action also won: number 11 David Ferrer of Spain delighted the centre-court crowd by coming from a set down to defeat Agustin Calleri of Argentina 6-3, 4-6, 6-4; number 15 Fernando Gonzalez of Chile topped Fernando Verdasco of Spain 6-3, 1-6, 6-3; and number 16 Robby Ginepri of the United States won 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 over Sebastien Grosjean of France.
The Rochus brothers from Belgium, Christophe and Olivier, advanced to the second round in differing fashion.
Christophe Rochus, a qualifier, topped France’s Gael Monfils 6-4, 6-4, while Olivier Rochus saved a match point in the second-set tiebreaker en route to a 1-6, 7-6 (6), 6-3 win over Tomas Berdych.
The Czech Republic’s Berdych led 6-5 in the tiebreaker, but Rochus hit three straight winners to take the set and force a decider.
In other first-round matches, Argentina’s Jose Acasuso advanced when Mikhail Youzhny of Russia retired with a lower-back injury while Acasuso led 2-0 in the third set, and Ivo Karlovic beat Greg Rusedski 6-7 (5), 7-6 (2), 7-6 (3).
”If you could have written a worse draw this week, that was it,” Rusedski said. ”I mean, Karlovic [at] altitude [on] quick courts is probably the hardest player to play here this week out of the first-round draw by far.”
Karlovic, a 2,08m Croatian, and Rusedski, the Briton who measures 1,93m, served a combined 33 aces. Karlovic hit 24, above his tour-leading average of 18,8 per match. His first-serve percentage was 68%.
”I have to give him credit,” Rusedski said. ”He served fantastically well … missed three volleys the whole match. I didn’t do much wrong. I didn’t drop my serve.”
For Karlovic, who had to qualify to get into the main draw, it was his first win since losing to Andre Agassi in three tiebreakers in the US Open second round. — Sapa-AP