EASTBOURNE, England, June 19 (UPI) -- No. 6-seeded Shahar Peer was pushed to a third set before claiming a first-round win at the $600,000 International Women's Open in Eastbourne, England.
Peer advanced with a 6-2, 5-7, 6-4 win over Elena Likhovtseva Tuesday in the first round of the grass-court tournament and is paired against Aiko Nakamura in the second round.
Seeded players Marion Bartoli and Sybille Bammer also won Tuesday. Bartoli had little trouble in a 6-2, 6-3 win over Tathiana Garbin and Bammer posted an identical 6-2, 6-3 decision over Maria Kirilenko.
Also winning were Nakamura, Agnieszka Radwanska, Elena Baltacha, Katie O'Brien, Nathalie Dechy and Mara Santangelo.
World No. 1 and event defending champion Justine Henin is the top seed for the tournament while Amelie Mauresmo is seeded second. They open their play on Wednesday.
