Govortsova wins first-round match in China

GUANGZHOU, China, Sept. 15 (UPI) -- Olga Govortsova and Mariya Koryttseva each notched first-round victories Monday at the $175,000 Guangzhou International Women's Open tennis tournament in China.

Govortsova, seeded sixth, was particularly effective in grabbing the advantage on her opponent's second serve in a 6-3, 6-2 win over Zi Yan. Govortsova won three-quarters of the points after Zi missed on her first serve.

Koryttseva, seeded eighth, survived a tight 6-4, 6-4 victory over Akgul Amanmuradova. Just 11 points separated Koryttseva and Amanmuradova in the match but Koryttseva was also to record two more breaks than Amanmuradova.

Also Monday, Ioana Raluca Olaru defeated Aniko Kapros 6-7 (5-7), 6-4, 6-1; Lu Jingjing topped Ekaterina Dzehalevich 7-6 (7-4), 6-2; Alla Kudryavtseva edged Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-4, 4-6, 6-3; and Karin Knapp beat Shuai Zhang 7-6 (8-6), 1-6, 6-1.

Vera Zvonareva, who has a first-round bye, is the week's top seed. Virginie Razzano won last year's event in Guangzhou but is not in the 2008 field.