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Cirstea posts first-round Tashkent upset

Sorana Cirstea, shown in a 2009 file photo, was a first-round winner Monday at the Tashkent Open in Uzbekistan. UPI/John Angelillo
Sorana Cirstea, shown in a 2009 file photo, was a first-round winner Monday at the Tashkent Open in Uzbekistan. UPI/John Angelillo | License Photo

TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, Sept. 12 (UPI) -- Sorana Cirstea posted a straight-set upset Monday of second-seeded Bojana Jovanovski at the Tashkent Open tennis tournament in Uzbekistan.

Cirstea dropped serve once in a 6-3, 6-1 first-round victory. She fought off all five break points she faced in the first set and used four breaks to easily offset her one loss on serve in the second.

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Fourth-seeded Anastasija Sevastova took out Mariya Koryttseva 6-0, 7-6 (7-1). Sevastova won 68 percent of the points in the first set and survived a seesaw second in which both players lost serve three times.

No. 7-seeded Evgeniya Rodina was a 6-3, 4-6, 6-0 winner over Iryna Bremond, breaking open a tight match by dominating the third set. She won 70 percent of the points receiving serve in the set.

Also Monday, Misaki Doi topped Mandy Minella 6-2, 4-6, 6-4; Valeria Savinykh swept past Lesia Tsurenko 6-4; 6-3; and Vitalia Diatchenko edged Olga Govortsova 7-6 (8-6), 3-6, 6-4.

Top-seeded Ksenia Pervak has her first-round match Tuesday as does Alla Kudryavtseva, who won the tournament last year.

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