NEW YORK — Ana Ivanovic raised her racket, ready for an easy overhead slam in what was shaping up as an easy match.
Then she somehow spiked the ball right into the net from just a few feet away.
Out of whack lately because of an injured right thumb, the world No. 1 was suddenly out of sorts. Ivanovic recovered in time Tuesday to avoid becoming the first top-seeded woman to lose in the first round at the U.S. Open, rallying past Vera Dushevina 6-1, 4-6, 6-4.
“I could feel some shots, lack of practice,” Ivanovic said.
Serena Williams took a more direct approach. Favored by oddsmakers to win the women’s title, she overwhelmed Kateryna Bondarenko with her serve in a 6-1, 6-4 victory.
Seventh-seeded Venus Williams advanced, too, beating Samantha Stosur 6-2, 6-3.
Sixth-seeded Dinara Safina of Russia, No. 9 Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland, No. 13 Agnes Szavay of Hungary and No. 16 Flavia Pennetta of Italy won. Anna-Lena Groenefeld of Germany beat No. 11 Daniela Hantuchova.
No. 13 Fernando Verdasco of Spain, No. 14 Ivo Karlovic of Croatia and No. 15 Tommy Robredo of Spain won. Tommy Haas of Germany beat No. 12 Richard Gasquet of France 6-7 (3), 6-4, 5-7, 7-5, 6-2, and Sam Querrey beat No. 22 Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic 6-3, 6-1, 6-2.
Marat Safin, the 2000 U.S. Open champ, was as volatile as ever, throwing a tantrum after being called for a foot fault during his 3-6, 6-2, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 win over Vince Spadea.
“I don’t want fight. I don’t want to shout,” Safin said. “I wish I could play normal matches and enjoy tennis sometimes.”
The worst start ever for a No. 1 woman at the U.S. Open came in 1967 when Maria Bueno drew a first-round bye and then lost in the second round. The last top-seeded man to lose in the first round was Stefan Edberg in 1990.
