Koukalova advances in Spanish Open

Madrid:

Klara Koukalova of the Czech Republic upset eighth-seeded Virginia Ruano Pascual of Spain 6-2, 4-6, 6-1 on Tuesday in the first round of the US$170,000 Spanish Open. Koukalova overpowered the error-prone Spaniard, who said it was painful to crash out in the first round of a tournament in her hometown. Also, sixth-seeded Magui Serna of Spain downed Patricia Wartusch of Austria 6-2, 6-2 in a match that lasted less than an hour. Chanda Rubin and Alexandra Stevenson, both from the United States, are the top seeds and will debut on Wednesday. Countrywoman Lindsay Davenport had been seeded first but dropped out, saying she preferred to rest for the French Open, which starts on Monday. In other action, third-seeded Conchita Martinez beat fellow Spaniard Marta Marrero 6-7 (5), 7-6 (3), 6-4 in a grueling match that lasted more than three hours. (AP)