Davydenko advances at Kremlin Cup

Defending champion Nikolay Davydenko beat Florent Serra of France 6-1, 7-5 in the first round of the Kremlin Cup on Tuesday.

Sixth-ranked Davydenko, the top seed in Moscow, had little trouble against 53rd-ranked Serra in the opening set but was made to work harder in the second, finally breaking the Frenchman in the eleventh game.

Davydenko is looking for his third straight and fourth title overall in Moscow.

Earlier, Uzbek qualifier Denis Istomin upset sixth-seeded Michael Llodra of France 7-6 (2), 6-3 in only his second ATP Tour match.

The 121st-ranked Istomin broke decisively in the sixth game of the second set and will face French veteran Fabrice Santoro in the second round.

Eighth-seeded Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia rallied to beat Russian qualifier Alexandre Kudryavtsev 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (6).

MOSCOW, AP