Kuznetsova bows out in Auckland 1st round

Former world No. 2 Svetlana Kuznetsova stumbled to a three-set loss to unseeded Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands in the first round of the ASB Tennis Classic on Monday. The two-time Grand Slam winner won the first set in a tight tiebreak but struggled in windy conditions and went down 7-6 (6), 6-2, 7-5. Swirling winds on center court at the Auckland Tennis Center contributed to more than 100 unforced errors, but 21-year-old Bertens, whose ranking climbed 120 places in 2012 to 63, kept her head to clinch one of her best wins. Kuznetsova took an extended break after dropping the second set to receive treatment for a foot injury but couldn't arrest Bertens' momentum. Pauline Parmentier of France ousted seventh-seeded American Christina McHale 6-4, 6-1 in an earlier upset.