SHANGHAI: World number three and defending champion Roger Federer suffered a surprise defeat in the second round of the Shangahi Masters on Tuesday, losing 7-6 (7/4), 2-6, 6-3 to little-known Spanish left-hander Albert Ramos-Vinolas.

The Swiss, returning to action after a month off, looked rusty against the 70th-ranked qualifier and despite looking back on track when he cruised through the second set, he succumbed in the decider to a single break of serve.

Ramos-Vinolas will face Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the third round after the Frenchman beat Victor Estrella Burgos 6-3, 6-2. In another second-round match, former US Open champion Marin Cilic defeated Borna Coric 6-1, 6-2.

In first-round action, ninth seed Milos Raonic came through against Brazil’s Thomaz Bellucci in two tiebreaks 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-2).

South Africa’s Kevin Anderson, seeded 12, beat German veteran Tommy Haas 6-3, 7-5, 10th seed Gilles Simon of France beat Georgian qualifier Nikoloz Basilashvili 6-3, 4-6, 6-0 while 11th-seeded Frenchman Richard Gasquet defeated Gilles Muller of Luxembourg 7-6 (7-4), 6-2.

In Monday’s first-round matches, Cilic escaped a major shock when he came from a set down and saved a match point before beating China’s Wu Di 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-4) and Tsonga subdued Tommy Robredo 6-7 (5-7), 6-2, 6-2. Australia’s Nick Krygios swept aside Austrian Andreas Haider-Maurer 6-3, 6-2.

Slovak Martin Klizan beat local favourite Zhang Ze 7-6 (10-8), 6-2 and now runs into top seed Novak Djokovic who is gunning for his ninth title of the year.

Croatia’s Ivo Karlovic, who prevailed 6-4, 7-6 (8-6) over Frenchman Jeremy Chardy, also faces a formidable second round opponent in 2009 runner-up Rafa Nadal.

American John Isner smashed 20 aces in a 6-1, 6-2 romp against France’s Adrian Mannarino while Roberto Bautista Agut also had it easy against fellow Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez who was beaten 6-2, 6-3.

Feliciano Lopez topped Russian qualifier Andrey Kuznetsov 6-4, 7-6 (7-3) and American Steve Johnson cut short Italian Andreas Seppi’s campaign with a 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (7-2) win.

Published in Dawn, October 14th, 2015

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