Mason, OH – Andy Roddick came up an opening-round loser Tuesday at the $2.825 million Western & Southern Open.
The 16th-seeded Roddick succumbed to French lucky-loser Jeremy Chardy 7-6 (7-4), 6-3 on the hardcourts at the Lindner Family Tennis Center. Roddick required the services of a trainer while leading 2-1 in the second set for an apparent back problem.
Roddick captured Cincinnati titles in 2003 and 2006 and was the runner-up in 2005.
Fourteenth-seeded Japanese Kei Nishikori avoided a first-round upset by whipping Spaniard Marcel Granollers 6-1, 6-2 on Day 3.
A second-round result saw Aussie Bernard Tomic take out American wild card Brian Baker 6-4, 6-3.
American wild card Sam Querrey reached the second round with a 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 victory over struggling Austrian Jurgen Melzer. Querrey titled on a hardcourt in Los Angeles last month.
Querrey's second-round opponent will be Olympic gold medalist and Wimbledon runner-up Andy Murray, this week's third seed and defending champion. The two- time Cincy titlist Murray beat Novak Djokovic in last year's marquee finale here.
In other opening-round play, German Tommy Haas snuck past fellow former top- five star David Nalbandian of Argentina 6-7 (0-7), 7-6 (7-4), 6-3, Argentine Carlos Berlocq topped Colombian fellow South American Santiago Giraldo 7-5, 6-3, and Russian Alex Bogomolov Jr. dropped Finnish veteran Jarkko Nieminen 6-4, 6-3.
This week's top seed is Wimbledon champion and Olympic silver medalist Roger Federer, who will open his latest Cincinnati stay against Bogomolov. The Swiss great captured this event in 2005, 2007, 2009 and 2010.
This seventh of nine ATP Masters tournaments will pay its 2012 champ $535,600.
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