Lyon (France), Oct 07: Fourth-seeded Felix Mantilla of Spain was eliminated in the first round of the Lyon Open, losing to Mikhail Youzhny of Russia 6-3 7-6 (7/2).
Mantilla's new Andre Agassi look - shaved head and all-black garb - did not help him. He dropped his serve five times and although he saved two match points at 5-6 in the second set, he was outplayed by the Russian in the tie-breaker.
Youzhny will now meet Slovakia's Dominik Hrbaty, who beat Spain's 17-year-old left-hander Rafael Nadal 6-3 7-5 yesterday. Nadal wasted three set-points on serve at 5-1 in the second set and then lost six straight games.
"I just made sure I kept the ball in the court at the end," Hrbaty said. "He started hitting the ball badly."
Nadal blamed his collapse on a strained left thigh. "I had two weeks off and only had two or three days preparation before Lyon," he said.


Bureau Report