Courier struggles to first-round win at Ericsson

Wins don't come easily these days for Jim Courier, who needed three sets and four match points Friday to beat 18-year-old Argentine qualifier David Nalbandian in the first round at the Ericsson Open.

With a 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 victory, Courier won his opening match for only the second time in five tournaments this year.

In a match suspended because of rain late Wednesday, Anastasia Myskina of Russia handed 19-year-old American Alexandra Stevenson her fifth loss in a row, 4-6, 7-5, 6-4.

Stevenson, a surprise semifinalist at Wimbledon last year, squandered two match points serving at 5-3 in the second set before play was halted. Myskina held a 4-2 lead in the third set when the match resumed 16 hours later, and she closed out the victory in eight minutes.

No. 4 seed Nathalie Tauziat of France and No. 14 Anke Huber of Germany also won. Lindsay Davenport, Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras put he hasn't won a tournament in nearly two years. He needed two hours and 10 minutes to put away Nalbandian, playing his first match on the ATP Tour.

The victory was Courier's 33rd in this event, formerly known as the Lipton Championships, but the 1991 champion has had little recent success. He'll try to advance beyond the second round at Key Biscayne for the first time since 1997 when he plays No. 7 seed Thomas Enqvist of Sweden on Saturday.

Results from the $5.76 million Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Florida:

Men Singles Second Round

(14) Lleyton Hewitt (Aus) bt Gaston Gaudio (Arg) 7-6 (7/4) 6-7 (6/8) 6-3. (15) Patrick Rafter (Aus) def. Max Mirnyi (Bela) 6-4, 6-2. Greg Rusedski (GB) def. Andrei Medvedev (Ukr) 6-4, 7-5. Byron Black (Zim) def. Younes El Aynaoui (Mor) 6-3, 1-6, 6-1. Tommy Haas (Ger) def. Mardy Fish (US) 6-2, 6-1. Sebastien Grosjean (Fr) def. Sjeng Schalken (Neth) 6-4, 6-3.

Men Singles First Round

George Bastl (Swit) def. Tuomas Ketola (Fin) 6-4, 6-4. Nicolas Massu (Chile) def. Arnaud Di Pasquale (Fr) 6-4, 4-6, 6-0. Andrei Pavel (Rom) def. Sargis Sargsian (Arm) 6-1, 6-3. Arnaud Clement (Fr) def. Chris Woodruff (US) 6-4, 3-6, 6-4. Michel Kratochvil (Swit) def. John van Lottum (Neth) 6-3, 6-3. Jiri Novak (Cz Rep) def. Alberto Martin (Sp) 6-2, 6-4. Wayne Black (Zim) def. Alberto Berasategui (Sp) 6-4, 6-1. Xavier Malisse (Bel) def. Magnus Larsson (Swe) 6-4, 6-3. Jim Courier (US) def. David Nalbandian (Arg) 6-3, 3-6, 7-5. Wayne Arthurs (Aus) def. Francisco Clavet (Sp) 7-5, 6-3. Cyril Sauinier (Fr) def. Thomas Johansson (Swe) 4-6, 6-3, 7-5. Christophe Rochus (Bel) def. Franco Squillari (Arg) 4-6, 6-3, 6-4. Guillermo Canas (Arg) def. Ivan Ljubicic (Cro) 6-4, 7-5. Jerome Golmard (Fr) def. Daniel Vacek (Cz Rep) 6-4, 6-2. Gianluca Pozzi (It) def. Jonas Bjorkman (Swe) 0-6, 7-6 (3), 6-3. Agustin Calleri (Arg) def. Marc Rosset (Swit) 5-7, 6-3,7-6 (5).

Doubles First Round

Giovanni Lapentti and Nicolas Lapentti (Ecu) def. Pablo Albano (Arg) and Nenad Zimonjic, Yugoslavia, 6-4, 7-6 (6). James Blake and Thomas Blake (US) def. Brent Haygarth (SA) and Aleksandar Kitinov (Maced) 6-4, 6-3. Martin Damm (Cz Rep) and Dominik Hrbaty (Slovak) def. Lucas Arnold and Martin Garcia (Arg) 6-1, 6-7 (7), 6-3. Gustavo Kuerten and Antonio Prieto (Bra) def. Juan Balcells and Alex Corretja (Sp) 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-2. Jan-Michael Gambill and Scott Humphries (US) def. Robbie Koenig (SA) and Peter Tramacchi (Aus) 7-6 (3), 6-3. Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan (US) def. Lan Bale, and Grant Stafford (SA) 7-5, 6-1.

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Women's Second Round

(1) Martina Hingis (Swit) def. Maureen Drake (Can) 6-1, 6-4. (4) Nathalie Tauziat (Fr) def. Tara Snyder (US) 6-3, 2-6, 7-6 (6). (6) Conchita Martinez (Sp) def. Jelena Dokic (Aus) 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. (7) Monica Seles (US) def. Lilia Osterloh (US) 6-1, 6-4. (9) Anna Kournikova (Rus) bt Jennifer Hopkins (US) 6-2 6-4. (14)Anke Huber (Ger) def. Tatiana Poutchek (Bela) 6-2, 6-2. (16) Dominque Van Roost (Bel) def. Holly Parkinson (US) 6 -7 (7), 6-1, 6-0. Natasha Zvereva (Bela) def. Irina Spiriea (Rom) 6-3, 6-4. Amanda Coetzer (SA) def. Daja Bedanova (Cz Rep) 4-6, 6 -2, 6-3. Patty Schnyder (Swit) def. Rita Kuti Kis (Hun) 7-6 (4), 7-5. Lisa Raymond (US) def. Denisa Chladkova, 7-5, 6-3. Nathalie Dechy (Fr) def. Karina Habsudova (Slovak) 6-4, 6-2. Adriana Gersi (Cz Rep) def. (11) Barbara Schett (Aut) 7-6, 4-6, 6-1. Amy Frazier (US) def. Angeles Montolio (Sp) 6-3, 6-1. Kim Klisters (Bel) def. Tamarine Tanasugarn (Thai) 3-6, 6-3, 7-5. Anne-Gaelle Sidot (Fr) def. Kristina Brandi (US) 6-3, 6-3. Nathalie Dechy (Fr) bt Karina Habsudova (Slovak) 6-1 6-1,

Women's First Round

Anastasia Myskina (Rus) def. Alexandra Stevenson (US) 4-6, 7-5, 6-4.

Doubles First Round

Kristie Boogert and Miriam Oremans (Neth) def. Eva Martincova (Cz Rep) and Elena Wagner (Ger) 2-6, 6-1, 6-4. Karin Kschwendt (Aut) and Sandra Nacuk (Yug) def. Magdalena Grzybowska, 4-6, 7-6 (4), 6-1. Surina De Beer and Nannie De Villiers (SA) def. Rosa M. Andres and Christina Torrens Valero (Sp) 6-2, 7-5. Annabel Ellwood and Lisa McShea (Aus) def. Sabine Appelmans (Bel) and Rita Grande (It) 6-3, 6-4.