Berdych Stunned in Olympic Opener, Tipsarevic defeats Nalbandian

6th seed and world no. 7 Tomas Berdych if out of Olympic contention following a shocking defeat at the hands of Belgian Steve Darcis.  Ranked no. 75 in the world, Darcis hit 27 winners in the match to win in straight sets and create the first major upset of the tournament in a swift 86 minutes.  Berdych, who reached the finals of Wimbledon in 2010, has struggled of late.  Just a few weeks ago the former Wimbledon finalist lost in the first round of the 2012 tournament to Ernests Gulbis.  Darcis’ 6-4, 6-4 win over Berdych has earned him a spot in the second round where he will play world no. 43 Santiago Giraldo of Colombia.  Giraldo defeated American Ryan Harrison in the first round.

World no. 8 Janko Tipsarevic also played his first round match today.  In his second Olympic Games, he defeated Argentina’s David Nalbandian in straight sets.  The Serbian proved to be too strong and too consistent for Nalbandian, a former world no. 3.  Tipsarevic will play Philipp Petzschner.  The German was a replacement for the injured Ivo Karlovic and won his first round match against Slovakian Lukas Lacko in straight sets.In other first round action, Spain’s Nicolas Almagro defeated Serbia’s Viktor Troicki in straight sets, while American John Isner prevailed in his Olympic debut against Belgium’s Olivier Rochus.