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Wawrinka wins Cincy opener

Cincinnati - Stan Wawrinka polished off a two-day victory to reach the third round of the rain-plagued ATP-WTA Cincinnati Masters on Wednesday as the Swiss takes aim at a return to the year-end season finals in London.

The second seed at the last major tune-up prior to the US Open defeated 122nd-ranked American teenager Jared Donaldson 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.

The match began Tuesday night but was held up several times due to rain before being cancelled late in the evening.

The victory gives the two-time Grand Slam champion fresh motivation heading into the final third of the ATP campaign.

"I really want to qualify for London (eight-man World Tour Finals)," Wawrinka said. "That's my main goal for the rest of the season.

"I have to stay inside the top eight," added the world number four, who is bidding for a fourth straight London appearance.

Wawrinka said that advancing in steamy Cincinnati was a challenge against rising opponent Donaldson.

"It was two different matches between last night and today. It was a very difficult first match, he played well, and very aggressive.

"It was difficult to play in the heat today, I'm happy to take a win after not playing for two weeks," the Swiss said, after a back injury ruled him out of the Olympics.

"I'm very happy to win this match. I had to get my bearings on court again."

Japan's fifth seed Kei Nishikori joined Wawrinka in the third round with a 6-3, 6-2 defeat of experienced Mikhail Youzhny. Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, seeded seventh, beat American Reilly Opelka 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (7/3).

Eighth seed Dominic Thiem won his first match since late June at Wimbledon, defeating Australian John Millman 7-5, 6-1.

As first-round play got caught up after days of wet weather, Juan Monaco knocked out Los Cabos title-winner Ivo Karlovic 6-4, 6-4; France's Nicolas Mahut beat 15th seed Roberto Bautista Agut 7-6 (7/2), 2-6, 6-3.

In the women's draw, third seed and 2015 finalist Simona Halep started with a 6-3, 6-1 defeat of Annika Beck.

"I played pretty well today. I felt the game and the balls were a little bit heavier because of the rain and the humidity. But it was good for me," Halep said.

"I was a little bit nervous before the match because I had two weeks without matches. The first match of the tournament is tough. Now I'm more relaxed and I'm looking already forward to the next one."

US Open finalist Roberta Vinci stopped Tsvetana Pironkova 7-5, 6-3. Hungarian Timea Babos upset Swiss 13th seed Belinda Bencic 7-5, 6-2.

Results from the fourth day of the Cincinnati ATP Masters and WTA hardcourt tournament on Wednesday (x denotes seeded player):

Men

Second round

Stan Wawrinka (SUI x2) bt Jared Donaldson (USA) 2-6, 6-3, 6-4

Kei Nishikori (JPN x5) bt Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) 6-3, 6-2

Dominic Thiem (AUT x8) bt John Millman (AUS) 7-5, 6-1

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA x7) bt Reilly Opelka (USA) 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (7/3)

Milos Raonic (CAN x4) bt John Isner (USA) 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (7/5)

Rafael Nadal (ESP x3) bt Pablo Cuevas (URU) 6-1, 7-6 (7/4)

Gael Monfils (FRA x9) bt Marcos Baghdatis (CYP) 7-5, 6-0

Bernard Tomic (AUS) bt David Goffin (BEL x11) 3-6, 7-5, 6-4

Marin Cilic (CRO x12) bt Fernando Verdasco (ESP) 6-3, 6-1

Borna Coric (CRO) bt Nick Kyrgios (AUS x14) 7-6 (7/2), 4-6, 7-6 (8/6)

Grigor Dimitrov (BUL) bt Feliciano Lopez (ESP x16) 5-7, 6-3, 7-6 (8/6)

Steve Johnson (USA) bt Julien Benneteau (FRA) 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 (7/5)

Andy Murray (GBR x1) bt Juan Monaco (ARG) 6-3, 6-2

Kevin Anderson (RSA) bt Richard Gasquet (FRA x13) 6-2, 6-4

Yuichi Sugita (JPN) bt Nicolas Mahut (FRA) 6-3, 7-5

Tomas Berdych (CZE x6) bt Marcel Granollers (ESP) 6-3, 7-6 (7/4)

First round

Nicolas Mahut (FRA) bt Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP x15) 7-6 (7/2), 2-6, 6-3

Juan Monaco (ARG) bt Ivo Karlovic (CRO) 6-4, 6-4

Marcel Granollers (ESP) bt Jiri Vesely (CZE) 6-4, 6-7 (5/7), 6-2

Yuichi Sugita (JPN) bt Alexander Zverev (GER) 6-7 (4/7), 6-4, 6-2

Women

2nd rd

Simona Halep (ROM x3) bt Annika Beck (GER) 6-3, 6-1

Roberta Vinci (ITA x6) bt Tsvetana Pironkova (BUL) 7-5, 6-3

Timea Babos (HUN) bt Belinda Bencic (SUI x13) 7-5, 6-2

Misaki Doi (JPN) bt Christina McHale (USA) 2-6, 6-3, 6-4

Daria Gavrilova (AUS) bt Elina Svitolina (UKR x17) 6-2, 6-2

Garbine Muguruza (ESP x4) bt CoCo Vandeweghe (USA) 7-6 (7/4), 6-2

Angelique Kerber (GER x2) bt Mladenovic (FRA) 6-0, 7-5

Carla Suarez Navarro (ESP x9) bt Alize Cornet (FRA) 6-2, 1-0, retired

Johanna Konta (GBR x10) bt Donna Vekic (CRO) 6-2, 6-3

Timea Bascinszky (SUI x12) bt Lesia Tsurenko (UKR) 6-3, 6-0

Barbora Strycova (CZE) bt Samanthat Stosur (AUS x14) 7-6 (13/11), 6-3

Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS x7) bt Alison Riske (USA) 3-6, 6-3, 6-1

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS x16) bt Kurumi Nara (JPN) 7-6 (7/5), 6-1

Agnieszka Radwanska (POL x5) bt Andrea Petkovic (GER) 6-0, 6-1

Dominika Cibulkova (SVK x8) bt Johanna Larsson (SWE) 6-7 (5/7), 6-4, 7-5

First round

Kristina Mladenovic (FRA) bt Kateryna Bondarenko (UKR) 7-6 (7/1), 6-3

Andrea Petkovic (GER) bt Lucie Safarova (CZE) 6-4, 6-7 (4/7), 6-2

Johanna Larsson (SWE) bt Irina-Camelia Begu (ROM) 6-3, 4-6, 6-3

Kurumi Nara (JPN) bt Victorija Golubic (SUI) 6-4, 4-6, 7-5


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