Lleyton Hewitt wins Valencia opener

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VALENCIA, Spain -- Former No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt beat Juan Monaco of Argentina 6-3, 6-4 in the opening round of the Valencia Open on Monday, ending a 10-match losing run against top-10 opponents.

The Australian wild-card entry broke the 10th-ranked Monaco twice in the opening set and three times in the second at the indoor hard-court tournament. The loss makes it difficult for the Argentine to qualify for the season-ending ATP World Tour Finals in London.

Hewitt will next face Ivan Dodig after the Croatian qualifier beat Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany 6-2, 7-6 (6).

John Isner outlasted Fabio Fognini of Italy 6-3, 6-7 (4), 7-5, helping the American remain in the hunt for a spot at the World Tour Finals. The 11th-ranked Isner will face Albert Ramos of Spain, who beat Rajeev Ram of the United States 6-3, 6-3.

Fernando Verdasco beat Tommy Robredo 6-3, 6-4 in an all-Spanish match and will play Marin Cilic of Croatia. David Goffin of Belgium beat Pablo Andujar of Spain 6-2, 6-2.

Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press

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