Ljubicic, Malisse tango in Paris

Croatia's Ivan Ljubicic marched into the second round of the Paris Masters on Monday with a straightforward 6-3 6-3 victory over Argentina&#...

Croatia’s Ivan Ljubicic marched into the second round of the Paris Masters on Monday with a straightforward 6-3 6-3 victory over Argentina’s Juan Ignacio Chela.

The tournament’s opening match was played out in front of a large crowd in the cavernous Bercy stadium, but Chela failed to match their enthusiasm, turning in a passionless perfomance against his 23-year-old opponent. Ljubicic, who will face 12th seed Andy Roddick in the second round, was gifted the match as Chela served up consecutive double faults at 3-5 in the second set.

The 16 seeds, led by world number one Lleyton Hewitt and Andre Agassi, have all been handed byes into the second round. Belgium’s Xavier Malisse won nine straight games against Austrian Stefan Koubek to book his place in the second round. The 22-year-old was treated for a back injury midway through the first set which he lost 7-5, but recovered in spectacular fashion to win the next two 6-2 6-0.

Story continues below this ad

After saving a break point early in the second set Malisse broke to lead 3-1 before steamrollering to victory. For Koubek, a season which began so promisingly when he reached the quarter-finals of the Australian Open has ended with a string of first round defeats. The 25-year-old made 43 unforced errors as he slumped to his eighth consecutive defeat on the men’s tour. Malisse has also suffered a dip in form since reaching thesemi-finals at Wimbledon but on Monday’s evidence will provide a stern test for eighth seed Roger Federer of Switzerland in the second round.

The 16 seeds, led by world number one Lleyton Hewitt andAndre Agassi, have all been handed byes into the second round.

3 Indians killed, one injured, 5 rescued in Mozambique boat accident

India2 hr ago

Three Indian nationals were killed and one was injured in a boat accident off the coast of Beira in Mozambique. Five others were rescued and the Indian High Commission has extended their condolences to the families. The mission is coordinating with local authorities to locate the missing 5 Indians.

View all shorts

Live Blog

PHOTOS