ROME, May 5: World number one and top seed Roger Federer was ousted from the Rome Masters on Wednesday, losing 3-6 6-3 6-2 to Spain's Albert Costa in the second round.
The result left fourth seed Tim Henman the highest-ranked player left in the tournament after the Briton swept past Czech Radek Stepanek 6-1 6-1 to reach the third round.
Federer, beaten in last year's final by Costa's compatriot Felix Mantilla, completed the exodus of the top three seeds after U.S. Open champion Andy Roddick and German third seed Rainer Schuettler went out in the first round.
The Swiss was playing his first clay court tournament of the season and started well with a combination of ground strokes and volleys that helped him cruise past the 2002 French Open champion in the opening set.
His game fell to pieces just when he appeared to be comfortably in control, however, with errors creeping into his game in the second set as his concentration wavered.
A careless backhand and a wild smash over the baseline gave Costa the break he needed to force a deciding set. Having exchanged early breaks, four consecutive unforced errors by Federer in the fifth game gave Costa a vital break. The Spaniard broke again in the seventh game to complete Federer's third defeat of the year.
Henman, who is more at home on fast grass courts than Rome's slow clay, used his serve-volley game to sweep aside Stepanek. Asked whether he felt more confident after the early exits of the tournament's top three, Henman replied: "I don't think the rankings make much difference. They don't mean anything when you come out here to play your matches."
Second round:
Nikolay Davydenko (Russia) bt Fernando Gonzalez (Chile) 6-2 5-7 6-2; Luis Horna (Peru) bt Martin Verkerk (Netherlands) 6-4 3-6 6-3; Vincent Spadea (USA) bt Hicham Arazi (Morocco) 2-6 6-2 6-4; Albert Costa (Spain) bt Roger Federer (Switzerland) 3-6 6-3 6-2
First round:
Lleyton Hewitt (Australia) bt Andreas Seppi 5-7 7-5 6-3
Clijsters struggles
BERLIN: World number two Kim Clijsters struggled on her return to WTA tour action on Wednesday, needing three sets to beat Spanish qualifier Marta Marrero 6-3 2-6 6-4 in her first match at the German Open.
The top seed, wearing a brace around her left wrist to nurse an injury that sidelined her for weeks, looked far from her best as she battled to beat her unheralded opponent in a second-round match.
The 20-year-old Belgian, who resumed playing in a Fed Cup tie last month but had not entered a tournament for seven weeks, had a bye in the first round as one of the top eight seeds.
Clijsters, who lost to compatriot Justine Henin-Hardenne in the final here last year, is a right-hander but the injury to her left wrist prevents her from using her two-handed backhand to the full.
She seemed in control in the first set but collapsed in the second, which she lost by hitting a forehand wide on set point. The Belgian, who looked rusty and made many uncharacteristic errors, struggled in a tight decisive set until Marrero missed a drop shot on match point to end the contest.
By contrast, second seed Amelie Mauresmo of France wasted little time in her opening match, easing past Argentine Gisela Dulko 6-1 6-2 in just 50 minutes. World number three Mauresmo, 24, has fond memories of Berlin, having reached the final as a qualifier in 1998 and winning the title in 2001.
Number three seed Venus Williams, chasing a third successive title after victories in Charleston and Warsaw, overcame tough Greek Eleni Daniilidou 7-5 6-3 in a match delayed by rain.
Second round:
Venus Williams (USA) bt Eleni Daniilidou (GRE) 7-5, 6-3; Ai Sugiyama (JPN) bt Elena Likhovtseva (RUS) 6-1, 6-2; Maria Sharapova (RUS) bt Petra Mandula (HUN) 4-5 - retired; Paola Suarez (ARG) bat Barbara Schett (AUT) 6-4, 6-3; Amelie Mauresmo (FRA) bt Gisela Dulko (ARG) 6-1, 6-2; Elena Dementieva (RUS) bt Stephanie Cohen-Aloro (FRA) 6-4, 3-6, 6-2; Denisa Chladkova (CZE) bt Maria Sanchez Lorenzo (SPA) 2-6, 6-4, 6-3; Kim Clijsters (BEL) bt Marta Marrero (SPA) 6-3, 2-6, 6-4;
Karolina Sprem (CRO) bt Meghann Shaughnessy (USA) 6-2, 7-6 (7/3); Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS) bt Elena Bovina (RUS) 6-2, 6-0. -Agencies
