Daniilidou beats Li at Dubai Open

Dubai:

Eleni Daniilidou of Greece upset seventh-seeded Li Na of China while No 6 Patty Schnyder of Switzerland advanced past defeated Italy's Francesca Schiavone in the first round of the Dubai Open on Monday. The 42nd-ranked Daniilidou needed more than three hours to subdue Li 6-7 (5), 7-6 (3). Schnyder, the only left-hander in the tournament, struggled in the opening set but prevailed 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-3 over Schiavone. "I was facing a little trouble adjusting to the fast pace of the court in the first set. But once I gauged the pace, I was all right," Schnyder said. Maria Kirilenko of Russia also advanced to the second round after beating wild card Monica Niculescu of Romania 6-3, 6-0. "It was a really easy match for me. I think I did some right things in the match and that helped," Kirilenko said. Alicia Molik of Australia beat Anna-Lena Groenefeld of Germany 6-3, 6-4 while Japan's Ai Sugiyama defeated Tunisian Selima Sfar 6-4, 5-7, 6-3. Defending champion and second-ranked Justine Henin had a bye in the first round. The tournament, which runs until Saturday, also features third-ranked Amelie Mauresmo, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Martina Hingis.

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