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| Shenay Perry upset fifth-seeded Daniela Hantuchova. |
STANFORD, Calif. (AP) -- Shenay Perry continued her breakout season with a 6-2, 0-6, 6-3 victory over fifth-seeded Daniela Hantuchova in the first round of the Bank of West Classic on Tuesday night.
"I want to do well, of course, but I try not to put too many expectations on myself," Perry said. "It felt great, but I didn't feel that much pressure out there."
Perry, who turned pro in 2000, was the last American to be eliminated at Wimbledon last month, reaching the fourth round. That led to a career-high ranking of No. 49. She had never been ranked higher than 64th.
Perry had to play in the qualifying tournament to reach the main draw here, which she saw as a positive.
"Coming here to qualify was a good thing," she said. "Playing in the heat helped me test my stamina. Getting three matches under my belt might have helped me win tonight."
Perry and Jill Craybas meet in Wednesday's second round as the only two Americans left in the event.
"I saw her at Wimbledon, so I knew it would be a tough match," the 17th-ranked Hantuchova said. "It was more about me making way too many mistakes and not playing well at all. I know I have a lot of work to do."
Jelena Jankovic beat Lilia Osterloh 7-5, 6-3, to earn a spot in the second round and a match against world No. 2 Kim Clijsters. Also, sixth-seeded Ai Sugiyama defeated Kveta Peschke 6-3, 6-4, Samantha Stosur topped qualifier Olga Savchuk 6-1, 6-3, and qualifier Vasilisa Bardina upset 42nd-ranked Sania Mirza, 6-3, 6-2 in the late match.
The Bardina-Mirza match was delayed several minutes after the first set due to feedback problems with the stadium speakers. The match proceeded without the chair umpire's microphone.
Jankovic, coming off her best finish -- reaching the fourth round at Wimbledon -- at a Grand Slam event, was happy just to get off the court in two sets as California continues to experience a heat wave with temperatures reaching 94 degrees at match time.
"It's the same for both players, but it's still hard to get used to," Jankovic said. "I wasn't happy with the way I played, but I'm glad I didn't have to stay out in the heat."
After a sluggish first set, the 27th-ranked Jankovic delivered four aces and won 67 percent of her first serve points in the second set to finish the match in 1:22.
Jankovic has lost all three of her matches with Clijsters, including in the quarterfinal of the 2002 Bank of the West.
"I need to improve on my serve and to cut down on my errors," Jankovic said. "I just have to be aggressive."
The 18-year-old Bardina, who broke into the top 100 at No. 98 for the first time, won three qualifying matches at Wimbledon last month to reach her first Grand Slam main draw. She followed that by qualifying here.
Updated on Wednesday, Jul 26, 2006 2:26 am EDT