Croatia's Marin Cilic failed to take advantage of his booming serve, losing to Russia's Mikhail Youzhny 4-6, 7-6 (4), 6-1 Monday in the first round of the Rogers Cup. Cilic, seeded 14th, made only 50 percent of his first serves against Youzhny, who is ranked No. 65. This was the second straight hardcourt tournament that Cilic did not win a match. He lost to No. 153 Somdev Devvarman of India in Washington last week. In another first-round upset, Frederic Niemeyer of Canada, ranked No. 487, served well in downing No. 39 Igor Kunitsyn of Russia 7-5, 6-1. Niemeyer next faces Roger Federer on Tuesday night, his first match since winning Wimbledon on July 6. The top-ranked Swiss has been off the tour to attend to the July 23 birth of his twin daughters. Germany's Rainer Schuettler defeated France's Florent Serra 6-4, 6-0. Schuettler, ranked No. 91, will face seventh-seeded Jo-Wilfred Tsonga of France in the second round. Russia's Igor Andreev advanced when countryman Dmitry Tursonov quit with the score 5-5 in the first set because of an injured left ankle. France's Paul-Henri Mathieu defeated Spain's Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 7-5, 0-6, 6-1, and France's Jeremy Chardy downed Taiwan's Yen-Hsun Lu 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-4. Azarenka cruises In Ohio, ninth-seeded Victoria Azarenka advanced into the second round of the Cincinnati Open with a 6-3, 7-6 (2) win over Kaia Kanepi on Monday. Azarenka used a steady game to defeat Kanepi, who committed 36 unforced errors to Azarenka's 15. Kanepi also had six double-faults, while Azarenka had just one. Azarenka said the match was tougher than the score indicated. Two qualifiers, Olga Govortsova and Kateryna Bondarenko, also advanced in straight sets. Govortsova beat Ekaterina Makarova 6-1, 6-3 and Bondarenko topped Magdalena Rybarikova 6-2, 6-2. In other matches, 16th-seeded Virginie Razzano fell to Anna-Lena Groenefeld, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4; Patty Schnyder defeated Gisela Dulko 6-4, 6-0; Lucie Safarova outlasted Iveta Benesova 6-3, 7-6 (7); Aleksandra Wozniak beat Carla Suarez Navarro 6-0, 6-3; and Melinda Czink handled Alize Cornet 6-3, 6-2. The $2 million Western and Southern Financial Group Women's Open was elevated this year from a Tier III event to a Premier Level tournament. Pennetta wins LA trophy Italy's Flavia Pennetta outran and outsmarted Australian Samantha Stosur to win the LA Championships with a 6-4, 6-3 victory in Sunday's final. Pennetta stayed strong throughout the contest, while Stosur's game fell apart and she was unable to dictate with the big serve and forehand that had carried her to wins over Ana Ivanovic, Zheng Jie and Sorana Cirstea. “I was afraid of her serve, but I returned unbelievable and I think that was the most important thing today,” said Pennetta, who will rise to number 12 in the rankings when they are released Monday. “I've never won a tournament this size and I'm really happy.” The title was the 27-year-old Pennetta's eighth overall, while Stosur, seeded 13th, had been aiming for her first WTA title. The Australian finished with 32 unforced errors to only 16 for Pennetta. “Sure, I'm disappointed,” said the 25-year-old Stosur, who has yet to clinch a title in five finals. The 10th seed knocked off second seed Vera Zvonareva, three-time Grand Slam champion Maria Sharapova en route to the crown. Pennetta broke Stosur to win the contest when she exhausted the Australian in a long rally and finally took it with a forehand crosscourt winner.
