Murray bows out, Nadal advances

Rome: Third seed Andy Murray pulled out of the Rome Masters due to an injury as Rafael Nadal advanced to the third round.

Fifth seed Nadal beat local hope Fabio Fognini 6-1, 6-3 to kick off his quest for his seventh ATP title of the season winning 74 percent of his service points and breaking his 25th-ranked opponent five times Wednesday. Murray required treatment for a lower back injury midway through the second set of the match against Marcel Granollers. Then he decided to retire. ‘I pulled out because there is a good chance I wouldn`t be playing tomorrow. We`ll have to wait for Paris. I`d be very surprised if I were playing in Paris,’ he said. The French Open is to begin May 26. Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka also pulled out before his match against Alexandr Dolgopolov with a minor thigh injury. World No.24 Jerzy Janowicz ripped off his shirt after beating eighth-ranked Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 6-4, 7-6. In women`s singles, second seed Maria Sharapova beat Garbine Muguruza of Spain 6-2, 6-2 while China`s Li Na went through with a 6-3, 6-1 win over compatriot Zheng Jie. IANS