Nadal, Federer open with wins Down Under

Tennis Betting Lines

01/16/2012 - Melbourne, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former champions Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer highlighted Monday's first-round winners at the first Grand Slam event of the year -- the Australian Open.

The second-seeded Nadal cruised past Ukrainian-born American qualifier Alex Kuznetsov 6-4, 6-1, 6-1 in 1 hour, 46 minutes, while a third-seeded Federer leveled Russian qualifier Alexander Kudryatsev 7-5, 6-2, 6-2 in 1 hour, 38 minutes for his 60th match win at Melbourne Park.

Nadal played with his right knee heavily taped on Monday.

"I was sitting on a chair in the hotel, I felt like a crack on the knee -- really strange," Nadal said. "I stand up. I felt the knee a little bit strange. I moved the leg like this two times to try to find the feeling. After the second time, the knee stays with an unbelievable pain completely straight. I have no movement on the knee."

"I wasn't 100 percent sure I would have a chance to play," Nadal added.

Nadal played Monday after an MRI exam showed no major damage in the knee.

"I started with a little bit of a scare at the beginning, and nervous because I was really disappointed yesterday," the Spaniard said. "But after the first 10 games -- I started to play with normal conditions.

"The best thing is I felt the knee very well. I really don't understand why happened everything, but I am really happy that today I was ready to play and I played a fantastic match."

A healthy Federer also played some fine tennis on Monday.

"No problem, I am happy to be 100 percent fit," Federer said.

Both situated in the bottom half of the draw, Nadal and Federer could only meet in the semifinals next week. The 10-time major champion Nadal beat Federer in the 2009 Aussie finale, while Federer has won four Aussie crowns among his record 16 major titles.

The 30-year-old Federer is trying to become only the second man in the Open era (since 1968) to capture five Aussie titles.

Nadal's second-round opponent on Wednesday will be oft-inured former world No. 2 Tommy Haas, while Federer will encounter German Andreas Beck.

Seventh-seeded Czech Tomas Berdych and No. 8 American Mardy Fish were also among the Day-1 winners on Monday.

Berdych posted a 7-5, 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 decision over Spain's Albert Ramos, popping seven aces and breaking Ramos' serve five times to move on, while Fish rolled to a 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 straight-set victory over Luxembourg's Gilles Muller. Muller reeled off nine aces in the match, but also committed 39 unforced errors and failed to break the American's serve.

Fish will face Colombian Alejandro Falla in the round of 64.

Tenth-seeded Spaniard Nicolas Almagro overcame a first-set defeat to record a 1-6, 7-5, 6-3, 7-5 victory over Poland's Lukasz Kubot, while 11th-seeded Argentine slugger Juan Martin del Potro also battled back from an early setback to move on, posting a 2-6, 6-1, 7-5, 6-4 decision over France's Adrian Mannarino. Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov, the 13th seed, downed Aussie Greg Jones 1-6, 4-6, 6-1, 6-1, 6-2.

Up next for the former U.S. Open champion del Potro will be Slovenian Blaz Kavcic.

Towering American John Isner, seeded 16th here, handled Aussie Benjamin Mitchell 6-4, 6-4, 7-6 (7-1); 18th-seeded Spaniard Feliciano Lopez Leonardo Mayer of Argentina 7-6 (7-5), 6-3, 7-6 (7-2); 21st-seeded Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka waltzed past France's Benoit Paire 6-1, 6-1, 7-5; and rising Aussie youngster Bernard Tomic fought back to dismiss struggling 22nd- seeded Spaniard Fernando Verdasco 4-6, 6-7 (3-7), 6-4, 6-2, 7-5.

German Philipp Kohlschreiber took out 25th-seeded Argentine Juan Monaco 7-5, 4-6, 6-3, 6-7 (4-7), 6-0; Slovak Lukas Lacko knocked out 28th-seeded Croat Ivan Ljubicic 3-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4; Kevin Anderson of South Africa, the 30th seed, roll past Denmark's Frederik Nielsen 6-1, 6-2, 6-4; and Austria's Jurgen Melzer, the 31st seed, was driven out of the tournament by 6-foot-10 Croat Ivo Karlovic 7-6 (7-3), 7-5, 6-3.

Meanwhile, American Sam Querrey, on the mend from an elbow injury, swatted South African Kenny De Schepper 6-3, 6-2, 6-2, former Wimbledon runner-up David Nalbandian of Argentina was leading Jarkko Nieminen 6-4, 4-2 when the Finnish veteran retired, and former Aussie Open runner-up Marcos Baghdatis downed German Benjamin Becker 6-1, 7-6 (7-5), 6-2. Baghdatis reached the final here back in 2006. Nalbandian will clash with the 6-foot-9 Isner on Wednesday, while Querrey will battle the rising Tomic.

Italy's Flavio Cipolla outlasted former top-five Russian star Nikolay Davydenko 6-4, 4-6, 3-6, 6-2, 6-1, the aforementioned Haas got past American Denis Kudla 7-6 (7-5), 3-6, 6-0, 7-5, and American Donald Young earned a 6-1, 6-2, 4-6, 1-6, 6-2 victory over German Peter Gojowczyk.