Nadal, Roddick Cruise At Wimbledon; Grass-Weary Davydenko Exits Again In 1st Round

Wimbledon, England (AHN) - Second-seeded Rafael Nadal booked a second-round stint at Wimbledon on Tuesday, whipping 122nd-ranked Andreas Beck 6-4, 6-4, 7-6 (0) to join nemesis Roger Federer in the round of 64.

Nadal, who has lost twice to Federer in the Wimbledon finals the last two years, is hoping that his latest victory at the French Open will help reverse the tide this time-on the grass court surface nonetheless. The Spaniard stepped up that bid when he won at Queen's last week for his first title in grass.

"The first match is always very difficult, but I played well in the last tiebreak," Nadal told the Associated Press. "I was a little bit nervous today. It was tough, but I have very nice memories from the last two years."

Andy Roddick, another Federer victim at Wimbledon, celebrated his return to the Grand Slam season by outlasting Eduardo Schwank 7-5, 6-4, 7-6 (0). The American had skipped the French Open due to a shoulder injury.

Roddick will next face Serbian Janko Tipsarevic in the second round while Nadal will oppose Latvian Ernests Gulbis.

The first round was not as fortunate for Nikolay Davydenko, the no. 4 seed who was ousted in straight sets by Benjamin Becker 6-4, 6-4, 6-4. The Russian's setback is his latest on grass and his Wimbledon record now stands at 4-7, with five exits in the first round.

In other matches, countryman Andy Murray survived Frenchman Fabrice Santoro 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (5) while no. 8 seed Richard Gasquet trounced American Mardy Fish 6-3, 6-4, 6-2. James Blake was also victorious against Christophe Rochus 6-3, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 and Radek Stepanek eliminated Jan Hernych 6-3, 7-5, 6-0.

The other high seeds to advance to the second round were no. 17 Mikhail Youzhny, a 6-1, 6-4, 6-0 winner over Sergio Roitman, and no. 14 Paul-Henri Mathieu, who outdueled Oscar Hernandez 3-6, 6-2, 6-0, 6-2.