Paes-Damm duo ousts defending champions

Paes and Damm, who had lost to Bjorkman and Mirnyi in the semis here last year, overcame an indifferent form as they were coming out of consecutive first round defeats in the Masters Series tournaments in Paris and Madrid.

The top two teams from the Red and Gold Groups will qualify for the semi-finals here.

World number two Rafael Nadal overcame a stuttering start before sweeping aside Richard Gasquet in the first match of the Masters Cup showpiece here today.

The muscle-bound Mallorcan lost the first set, but found his rhythm in the second and third, winning 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in two hours and five minutes.

“In the beginning, I was a little bit nervous. Matches here are always very difficult,” he said. “So I started the match with a few doubts but later I played more aggressively. It was important to get the break in the beginning of the second set and I finished much better than I started.”

Nadal is seeking his first win in the elite eight-man tournament after pulling out injured in 2005 and losing to Roger Federer in last year’s semi-finals.

In another clash, sixth-ranked David Ferrer of Spain, Spain triumphed over Serbia’s Novak Djokovic, seeded third, in straight sets 6-4, 6-4.