Kubot opens Nastase tournament with win

BUCHAREST, Romania, April 23 (UPI) -- No. 7-seed Lukasz Kubot was a first-round winner Monday in the BRD Nastase Tiriac Trophy tennis tournament in Romania.

Kubot advanced over Gabriel Moraru 6-2, 6-3 by fighting off 9-of-10 break-point situations. He ended up with five breaks of his own, winning half of the points when Moraru served.

Potito Starace notched a minor upset with a 6-3, 6-0 victory over ninth-seeded Jeremy Chardy. Starace didn't allow Chardy a break-point opportunity in finishing the match in 65 minutes. It was the first time Starace beat Chardy in four career meetings.

Also Monday, Matthias Bachinger dropped his serve just once after the first set in a 3-6, 6-1, 6-3 win over Filippo Volandri and Xavier Malisse defeated Grigor Dimitrov 6-2, 6-4 with a pair of breaks in each set.

The win put Malisse into a second-round match against second-seeded Florian Mayer, the event's defending champion.