Safina nearly runs aground in opening round

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Russian armada of potential U.S. Open champions nearly lost its commander when top seed Dinara Safina had to dig out of a third-set quandary to avoid the humiliation of a first-round exit Tuesday.

Safina, the world's top-ranked player, uncorked 48 unforced errors and 11 double faults before conquering Australian Olivia Rogowska 6-7 6-2 6-4 in two hours and 35 agonizing minutes.

"I didn't break any racket and I didn't get a warning so that's already a positive," said Safina, a triple grand slam finalist whose volatile temperament is well documented.

While Safina escaped and set up a second-round encounter with Germany's Kristina Barrois, compatriots Maria Sharapova Svetlana Kuznetsova and Elena Dementieva advanced easily.

On the men's side, 2008 runner-up and second seed Andy Murray advanced, along with 2007 finalist Novak Djokovic, the fourth seed, and hard-hitting number seven Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

Safina's near-flameout allowed her to avoid the dubious distinction of becoming the only top-seeded woman to lose in the first round of the U.S. Open.

The explosive Muscovite was down 0-3, 15-40 in the final set before making a Houdini-like escape on the sun-drenched hardcourt at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

"I will never give up," said Safina, still looking for her maiden grand slam triumph. "So it doesn't matter how I play, I will run and I will stay there forever.

"I will do everything to win the match."

She certainly never gave up but she was certainly helped by the 65 unforced errors and 13 double-faults from her little-known opponent across the net.

ERROR FESTIVAL

The match was a festival of errors, each player begging the other to take command. When Rogowska assumed control in the final set, her nerves got the best of her.

"I'm disappointed that I was in a winning position and I let it go," said Rogowska, an 18-year-old wildcard from Melbourne ranked 167th.

"But it's a great learning experience. I'm getting confidence that I can match it up to the number one player in the world.

"I have to get more mentally tougher, and hopefully not let it slip again next time."

Sixth seed and 2004 winner Kuznetsova stomped Germany's Julia Goerges 6-3 6-2, while Sharapova, the 2006 champion, blitzed Bulgaria's Tsvetana Pironkova 6-3 6-0. Another Russian contender, 2004 finalist Dementieva, routed Frenchwoman Camille Pin 6-1 6-2 in 59 minutes.

Murray used a patient game to defeat big-hitting Ernests Gulbis of Latvia 7-5 6-3 7-5, while Djokovic never lost his serve and cruised past Croat Ivan Ljubicic 6-3 6-1 6-3.

"When I needed to, I upped my game," said Murray. "My concentration could have been a bit better. But for a first match, it was very good because he played very well."

The Scotsman said he enjoyed playing under the lights in Ashe Stadium before a crowd of nearly 24,000.

"I enjoy playing on that court," he said. "It's one of the biggest in the world. It's probably the coolest atmosphere out of all of the slams.

"Hopefully I'll play a lot of my matches on there."

The fans at Flushing Meadows were gracious to Djokovic, who was booed loudly a year ago after he made some sarcastic comments toward Andy Roddick during a courtside interview.

"What happened last year was like a fight with a girlfriend," he said. "These things happen. It was something that everybody can learn from it.

"I always felt at home here. I played so well last three years. I see no reason for me thinking about something that happened already.

"So today was great. I just hope that the fans will behave nice in the next rounds."

Tsonga beat American Chase Buchanan 6-0 6-2 6-1 to set up a second-round match against Finland's Jarkko Nieminen, who beat Italy's Fabio Fognini 7-5 7-6 6-4.

The 24-year-old Tsonga is hoping for a breakthrough result in New York and a chance to enter the conversation as a legitimate grand slam title contender.

"I'm here to win and to go to the next step," the Frenchman said. "The next step for me is to be in the five best players in the world."

(Editing by Pritha Sarkar)