Tennis: It's no breeze for defending champ

First-day action, led by victorious fifth seed and defending champion Katarina Srebotnik, was all too often a hit-and-miss affair as some of the world's best struggled as much with the wind as their opponents.

The swirling winds made life difficult - verging on impossible - for the players in their first on-court action in a couple of months.

And when light rain made a most unwelcome late-afternoon appearance in Auckland, the players and tournament organisers were left with no option but to call it quits.

By then class had shown out without the upsets which have marked opening-day ASB Classic action in recent years.

Srebotnik, 24, quickly disappeared from the stadium court after opening her campaign with a battling three-set win over long-time friend and two-time champion Eleni Daniilidou.

After 2h 37m on court for a 7-5 4-6 6-3 win, Slovenian Srebotnik headed indoors.

"I just wanted to get out and hit some balls out of the wind," Srebotnik said. "The wind out there made conditions very difficult. I'm sure Eleni had the same problem."

Of the match, in which there were 10 service breaks, 16 double faults and only three aces, Srebotnik said: "Eleni pushed me to the edge. I had to play well. She played much better than her ranking, for sure."

Both players were happy to play three sets, however, looking for as much tennis as possible at the start of the new year.

Daniilidou, beaten in the first round for the second time in as many years, said she was disappointed "to bow out", but admitted "in the end she [Srebotnik] just played better".

The difficult conditions were demonstrated at one stage in the first set when, between them, Srebotnik and Daniilidou dropped 11 successive points on serve.

Safely through her opening Sovereign singles match, Srebotnik now awaits the winner of today's scheduled clash between world No 92 Jamea Jackson of the United States and qualifier Tzipora Obziler of Israel.

Top seed Nadia Petrova had no such dramas in winning in her first appearance here.

The Russian needed just 1h 4m to cruise by Mariana Diaz-Oliva 6-2 6-2 without dropping a service game.

Petrova suggested her win was not as easy as the score might indicate.

"It was a struggle," said the world No 9. "There were too many unforced errors. I could not get my serve going. I have things to work on. I have to follow more to the net."

The wind?

"Of course it is frustrating. Playing in conditions like that wears you out mentally. You have to make lots of adjustments, including the ball toss when you are serving."

Petrova will play qualifier - and 2000 Classic champion - Anne Kremer of Luxembourg, who won a drawn-out three-set third-round qualifying match against Ukraine's Mariya Koryttseva.

Ashley Harkleroad, a finalist two years ago but, like Kremer, forced to come through qualifying this time, made it into the main draw in another three-set final-round qualifying match yesterday. She beat the qualifying tournament's top seed, Jelena Kostanic, 6-0 3-6 6-2 to book a first-round clash with fellow American Jill Craybas.

"I'm very delighted to get through qualifying. I love this tournament," said Harkleroad.