Roddick wins at Italian Open

ROME - Andy Roddick is taking a new, lighter approach to the clay-court season.

• Photos

After beating Greg Rusedski 6-4, 6-2 Monday in the first round of the Italian Open, Roddick said he had dropped 5 pounds off his 6-foot-2 frame.

"I worked a lot harder off the court with my fitness," the top-seeded Roddick said. "I think last year I was a little bit heavy, especially for clay, that's where you see it most."

Last year, Roddick lost to Olivier Mutis in the second round of the French Open, beaten 6-2 in the fifth set. The previous two years he lost in the first round of the clay-court major, and in 2001 Roddick retired with a hamstring injury against Lleyton Hewitt during the third round in Paris.

The $2.7 million Italian Open, the fourth Masters Series event of the year, is a key tuneup for the French Open, the only Grand Slam in which Roddick hasn't reached the semifinals.

"It's just a matter of getting into that comfort zone and it's harder for me on clay than other surfaces," Roddick said, adding he took advantage of an injury layoff after the Nasdaq-100 Open in March.

"After Miami my wrist was in a splint for about 10 days. I saw that as a very good opportunity to try to get in as good shape as I could," Roddick said.

Sixth-seeded Andre Agassi, winner of the Rome title in 2002, also advanced, beating Italian wild card Alessio Di Mauro 7-5, 6-2. Agassi, who turned 35 on Friday, is seeking his first tournament win of the year. He has not won since capturing his lone title of 2004 at the Cincinnati Masters in August.

"It was very tough today," Agassi said. "We had never played each other before."

Fourth-seeded Tim Henman of Britain eliminated three-time French Open winner Gustavo Kuerten of Brazil 6-3, 6-3. Albert Costa, the 2002 French Open champion, and French qualifier Richard Gasquet won as well. In a night match, Italian wild card Andreas Seppi upset 10th-seeded Joachim Johansson of Sweden 6-1, 6-2.

Roddick, who won the U.S. Men's Clay Court title in Houston eight days ago, became the top-seeded player after Roger Federer and Lleyton Hewitt withdrew.

Roddick took control with a break to go up 5-4 in the first set, forcing Rusedski to stretch for a volley that ended in the net. He then won the next five games and closed the match when his British opponent returned a serve long.

Rusedski, a serve-and-volley specialist ranked 44th, has not made it to the third round of any tournament this season, including the Australian Open, where Roddick beat him in the second round.

Roddick, 24-4 this season, insists he is not the favorite in Rome.

"You can only go on past results," he said. "Obviously, the last couple years over here I haven't played my best tennis, so it would be tough to make a case for me to argue. I feel as good as I ever have coming over here on the clay. This is the most prepared I've been."

Agassi, an eight-time Grand Slam champion, faced stiff resistance in the 70-minute first set. After trading breaks early, Di Mauro matched Agassi on long rallies, and the American required a forehand winner up the line to break for a 6-5 lead, then saved a break point against him before winning the set. The second set took only 28 minutes.

"Once I got my confidence, I played better," Agassi said.

Henman, trying to find the clay-court game that took him to the French Open semifinals last year, lost his serve just once against Kuerten. Kuerten, a clay-courter ranked 110th, returned last month after a six-month layoff following hip surgery.

"He's coming back from injury, but it's still a great win for me," Henman said.

Gasquet, who upset Federer before losing to Rafael Nadal in the Monte Carlo Masters semifinals last month, routed Thailand's Paradorn Srichaphan 6-0, 6-2. The 18-year-old Frenchman will meet Agassi in the second round.

Costa beat Spanish countryman Albert Montanes 6-4, 6-4.