Ivanovic loses in 1st round at Sydney event

Ana Ivanovic's Australian Open preparations hit another obstacle Sunday in the Sydney International when the former No. 1 and 2008 French Open champion was beaten 7-6 (5), 6-2 by Lucie Safarova.

Ivanovic lost to Kim Clijsters in the second round last week in the Brisbane International, meaning the Serb will have had just three tournament matches going into the Grand Slam event next week at Melbourne Park..

Top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki and Wimbledon champion and No. 2 seed Petra Kvitova have first-round byes in the joint ATP-WTA Sydney tournament. Top-seeded Juan Martin del Potro and the three other top men's seeds also have first-round byes.