Linz, Austria (Sports Network) - Fourth seed Lucie Safarova came up a first-
round loser on Day 1 at the $220,000 Generali Ladies Linz tennis event.
Swedish veteran Sofia Arvidsson overcame Safarova in 3-6, 6-2, 7-5 fashion
in just over two hours on the indoor hardcourts at Tips Arena Linz.
Also on Monday, Belgian Kiki Bertens got past German Mona Barthel 7-6 (7-3),
1-6, 6-1 and Czech Lucie Hradecka defeated Spaniard Silvia Soler-Espinosa
6-3, 7-6 (7-5).
This week's top seed is world No. 1 Victoria Azarenka, the Australian Open
champion and U.S. Open runner-up who's fresh off her title in Beijing.
Former Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic beat the Slovak
Republic's Dominika Cibulkova in last year's Linz finale. Kvitova is not
defending her title this week, while Cibulkova pulled out of the 2012 draw on
Monday, citing a shoulder injury.
The newest Linz titlist will earn $37,000.
The Sports Network