US Open: Andy Murray, Maria Sharapova into second round

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Third-seeded Maria Sharapova reached the US Open second round on Monday with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Hungary's Melinda Czink.

Sharapova, the 2006 champion, will face Spain's Lourdes Dominguez Lino for a place in the last 32.

Murray battles into second round

Earlier, London Olympic champion Andy Murray labored into the second round. Defending women's champion Samantha Stosur also cruised in her opening match at the year's final Grand Slam showdown.

Britain's third-seeded Murray, still seeking his first Grand Slam title, struggled at times in dispatching Russia's 73rd-ranked Alex Bogomolov 6-2, 6-4, 6-1 after waiting out a rain delay of more than two hours at Flushing Meadows.

Murray put a scare into his supporters by clutching his left leg after a point in the fifth game of the final set but blamed the problem on cramping after being pushed throughout the match, which lasted two hours and 15 minutes.

"Struggling a little bit," Murray said. "There were a lot of long points, especially at the beginning of the match.

"Just a little bit of cramping. I have to stay better hydrated for the next matches."

Easy win for Stosur

Australian seventh-seed Stosur began her repeat bid with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Croatia's Petra Martic before showers drenched the New York hardcourts.

Stosur, seking her first title since upsetting Serena Williams in last year's US Open final, fired 10 aces to advance in 51 minutes on the same Ashe Stadium court where she hoisted the trophy a year ago.

"It was great to get out there again," Stosur said. "I felt like I was ready to go. It was a good start. I certainly won't complain about being out there. I'm really happy with the way I played."

World number ones Roger Federer and Victoria Azarenka were scheduled for later matches with former US Open champion Kim Clijsters also scheduled for action at the 23,700-seat main stadium.

Bogomolov, who changed his citizenship from American to Russian late last year, beat Murray last year at Miami in their first meeting and battled him at the start this time, the match opening with four breaks of serve.

Both of us struggled: Murray

Murray denied Bogomolov on two break points in the fifth game and held, then broke the Russian twice more, the first on a backhand volley winner and the last on a forehand winner to claim the first set after 43 minutes despite connecting on only 28 percent of his first serves in the set.

"Both of us struggled early on," Murray said. "A six or seven out of 10. I didn't serve well at the beginning but I won in three sets against a tough player."

Bogomolov broke Murray to open the second set, the Scotsman squandering the point when a backhand off the net cord fell wide, and grabbed two break points in the fifth game before Murray battled back to hold.

But Murray broke back to 4-4 when Bogomolov sent a forehand long and broke again on a powerful forehand winner to claim the second set after 93 minutes.

Murray fired a backhand service return winner to break the Russian for a 2-0 lead in the third set, handed back the break by netting a forehand in the next game, but broke again for a 3-1 edge and held to the finish.

Next up for Murray will be either Croatia's Ivan Dodig or Japanese qualifier Hiroki Moriya.

Stosur 'prepared well'

Stosur, connecting on 69 percent of her first serves without facing a break point, won the first 19 points in a row before a double fault ended her bid for a golden first set.

"I knew at 4-0, 40-0 that I hadn't missed a point and the match had been going pretty quick," Stosur said. "It did pop into my head for a split second. Then I hit the double fault and it was erased and I was quickly on with the next point.

"It was 19 points in a row. You knew you were going to lose one at some point."

Stosur, a semi-finalist at the French Open, made a first-round exit from the Australian Open and the Olympics but avoided joining Svetlana Kuznetsova as the only US Open defending women's champion to lose in the first round.

"First round you are always going to have a little bit of nerves," she said. "I felt prepared the best I could. I had done everything I could. The way I felt going into it, I felt pretty relaxed."

The 28-year-old from Brisbane will face a qualifier in round two -- either Swiss Stefanie Voegele or Romania's Edina Gallovits-Hall.

Win for Li Na

Chinese ninth seed Li Na, a first-round US Open loser the past two years, beat Britain's Heather Watson 6-2, 6-3 to book a second-round matchup against Aussie Casey Dellacqua, who ousted Ukrainian qualifier Lesia Tsurenko 6-2, 6-3.

"I'm really happy I won the first match. Last few years I always lose first round," Li said. "You really have to win the first match, otherwise same like last year and I have to pack, I have to go back to airport to fly back home.

"Maybe this year, I just was in the final Montreal and I won in Cincy, so I got a lot more confident."