Sania advances as seeds tumble

With Martina Muller no more threatening than a gentle hitting partner, Sania Mirza almost looked bored with ease as she got through her first round match at the USD 175,000 Bangalore Open on Tuesday.

Sania, producing a flurry of scorching groundstrokes, beat the German 6-2, 6-2 to set up a second round clash with France's Camille Pin.

The Indian is the defending champion at Bangalore, after the WTA tour event shifted here from Hyderabad.

For the second rung of women's tennis in India, it was a mixed day as Isha Lakhani stepped into the second round but Ankita Bhambri fell at the first hurdle.

Sybille Bammer of Austria and eighth seeded Emma Laine of Finland also made first round exit in Bangalore.

Lakhani, a wild card entrant, was leading 4-1 in the first set when her Slovakian unseeded rival and the world number 296 Katarina Kachlikova pulled out after aggravating an eye infection.

Third seeded Mara Santengelo of Italy secured a berth to the second round with a convincing 6-3, 6-2 win over Henrieta Nagyova (Slovakia) in the Tier-III event at the Karnataka State Lawn Tennis Association courts.

The Italian, who reached her first tour quarterfinal in singles at Pattaya last week, was joined in the round of 16 by unseeded American Vania King, who put out qualifier Tatiana Poutchek of Belarus 6-1, 6-3.

Lakhani, ranked 488 in the world, now clashes with Ukraine's Yuliana Fedak for a place in the quarter-final.

Fedak accounted for Laine, the 19-year-old from Helsinki, who retired after complaining of acute tonsilitis. Fedak was leading 6-3, 3-1.

Russia's Anastassia Rodionova, unseeded, shocked Bammer, the world number 6-5, 6-4, 5-7, 6-0. Though Bammer pulled one back in the second set, she could not stop the Russian, who was on a roll in the final game.