Tennis: Henman has easy passage

TIM HENMAN cruised through his first-round match of the President's Cup in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, yesterday - which he won last year - with a straight sets win over Israel's Nir Welgreen. British No 1 again in the latest ATP rankings, he beat Welgreen 6-1, 6-4.

"Sometimes the first round isn't the easiest match but I was happy with the way I played," Henman said.

"I served well and playing on a quick court like they've got here, that's important. There can be added pressure coming back to defend a title, but I feel very confident. There's good opposition here, though."