Nadal off to rocky start in US Open defence

NEW YORK: Rafael Nadal got his US Open title defence off to a rocky start Tuesday, but found plenty to be pleased about after a tough straight-sets victory over 98th-ranked Andrey Golubev.

Nadal, who admitted being nervous on his return to the Arthur Ashe stadium where he completed a career Grand Slam last season, saved seven set points in the second set and came back from two breaks down in the third.

He finally wrapped up victory after two hours and 49 minutes, taking a first step towards what many tennis fans hope will be a final with Serbia's Novak Djokovic.

Meanwhile Djokovic, who has seized the world number one ranking with two Grand Slam victories and nine titles overall this season, eased into the second round when qualifier Conor Niland retired from their match with food poisoning.

Djokovic led 6-0, 5-1 at the time, and in 44 minutes had fired an array of service winners and baseline bombs that showed his right shoulder, which forced him out of the final in Cincinnati this month, was no longer a problem.

Golubev, serving for the second set at 5-3, took a 40-0 lead, only to see Nadal save five set points in that game and two more in the next.

Nadal edged ahead with a break for 6-5, giving himself a second break point in that game when he raced forward to scoop a Golubev drop shot over the net a fraction of an inch before it bounced a second time.

Golubev argued in vain -- and incorrectly -- that the ball had bounced twice.

Having taken the lead, Nadal dropped his own serve, and had to go to the tiebreaker -- in which he won the last six points.

Nadal had to battle back again in the third, falling behind two breaks before winning the last five games to seal the victory.

French Open champion Li Na was the biggest casualty of the day, the sixth-seeded Chinese stunned by Romanian teenager Simona Halep.

Halep, ranked 53 in the world, triumphed 6-2, 7-5 to hand Li her second straight Grand Slam disappointment -- after a second-round exit at Wimbledon.

Li's exit left the women's field without all three of this year's Grand Slam champions.

Australian Open champion Kim Clijsters, winner of the last two US Opens, is absent with a stomach muscle injury. Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova lost on Monday.

Their absences have left the women's draw wide open, and top contenders Caroline Wozniacki and Serena Williams wasted no time moving on.

World number one and top seed Wozniacki defeated 125th-ranked Nuria Llagostera Vives of Spain 6-3, 6-1.

Williams, seeded 28th after her near year-long layoff, took less than an hour to dispatch 54th-ranked Serbian Bojana Jovanovski 6-1, 6-1.

While Williams is trying to claim a 14th Grand Slam title -- and her first since Wimbledon 2010 -- Wozniacki is trying to earn a first.

Fourth-seeded Victoria Azarenka of Belarus also advanced with ease, beating Sweden's Johanna Larsson 6-1, 6-3.

Azarenka drew the short straw among the top women's seeds when she was put on a path to a possible third-round clash with Williams, who returned to tennis in June and has won two titles in her first four tournaments.