HONG KONG, Sept. 23 (UPI) -- Russian Marat Safin, who helped his counrty advance to the Davis Cup final, is the top seed at the Salem Open which began Monday.
Safin won two singles matches over the weekend to lead Russia to a 3-2 victory in its semifinal tie with Argentina. He reached the final at the Australian Open, but is seeking his first title of the year. He faces German Lars Burgsmuller in the first round.
Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero, the second seed, is seeking his second title of 2002. Ferrero, who won at Monte Carlo in April, takes on Austrian Stefan Koubek.
Third-seeded Carlos Moya of Spain has won four titles this season, with the most recent coming at Cincinnati in August. Moya will try to win for the fourth time in five career meetings with American Jan-Michael Gambill.
In the only match Monday, Korean Hyung-Taik Lee defeated Austrian Julian Knowle, 7-5, 4-6, 6-1.
