RODDICK RETURNS

Andy Roddick looks like he wants to stick around Flushing for a while. The no. 9 seeded American yesterday put his first-round loss in 2005 behind him, defeating Florent Serra 6–2, 6–1, 6–3. Roddick served well — 70% of first serves in, 72% of serve points won — and stuck with the aggressive style that propelled him to his first title of the season in Cincinnati last Sunday. Roddick lost his serve once after losing concentration on a let call that irked him, but broke Serra seven times in 15 chances. He won 15 of 17 points at the net.

STAGE RIGHT FOR LJUBICIC

Ivan Ljubicic, the no. 3 seed, became the first upset victim of the tournament yesterday, losing 6–3, 6–3, 6–3 to Feliciano Lopez, the left-handed Spaniard who serves lots of aces, volleys with style, and makes women swoon. Lopez stood for a long applause after his victory, which maintained the Croat’s tradition of misery in Flushing. In seven previous visits to the U.S. Open, Ljubicic had compiled a 6–7 record and never gone beyond the third round. His loss could aid the path of Andy Roddick, who might have come up against Ljubicic in the quarterfinals.

DONALD YOUNG WINS A SET

Donald Young, the much-talked about 17-year-old American, won his first set on the professional tour yesterday, but he lost the next three to Novak Djokovic (20), 4–6, 6–3, 6–0, 6–1. Djokovic played a sloppy first set, and Young took advantage, hitting his lefty forehand at sharp angles and moving in for a few crisp volleys. By the third set, however, he was holding his left arm and talking to a medical trainer. He also complained of a leg cramp, though Young’s demeanor — one of frustration, even when the match was close — perhaps caused him the most trouble. Young’s serve remains one his big weaknesses, and he showed some improvement in that regard, hitting a few faster than 130 mph, though the radar gun on the Grandstand seemed to be in a generous mood.

INJURED DAVENPORT SURVIVES

Lindsay Davenport had just the kind of first-round match she needed, a 6–1, 6–4 victory over Klara Zakopalova in 52 minutes. Davenport, who has been sidelined with a back injury most of the season, had to retire from the final at the Pilot Pen in New Haven on Saturday after she injured her shoulder and arm. Davenport said she has never had an arm injury before — “I’ve had every other injury known to a tennis player” — and did not quite know what to expect the rest of the tournament.