Mon Sep 8 11:20:40 2008

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Starace upends Granollers in Bucharest

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Bucharest, Romania (Sports Network) - Italy's Potito Starace upset seventh- seeded Spaniard Marcel Granollers in Monday's first-round action at the $525,000 BCR Open Romania.

Starace stifled Granollers in 6-2, 6-4 fashion on the red clay at BNR Arena. Up next for Starace will be Frenchman Florent Serra, the 2005 Bucharest champion.

In other opening-round play, Spaniard Albert Montanes bested Korean Hyung-Taik Lee 6-1, 7-6 (7-4); Serra outlasted fellow Frenchman Nicolas Devilder 3-6, 7-6 (8-6), 7-6 (7-4); Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez held off German Mischa Zverev 6-4, 3-6, 6-0; and German Denis Gremelmayr edged out France's Jeremy Chardy 6-1, 5-7, 6-4.

This week's top seeds are Frenchmen Richard Gasquet and defending Bucharest titlist Gilles Simon. Gasquet will open his week against Spaniard Oscar Hernandez, while Simon, who topped Romania's own Victor Hanescu in last year's finale here, will face Russian Evgeny Korolev in his first-rounder.