TORONTO (AP) -- Dinara Safina withstood Camille Pin's upset attempt, hanging on for a 7-6 (9), 3-6, 7-5 opening-round win over the qualifier that lasted more than 2 1/2 hours on a chilly, windy night.
"It was the same wind for her, so I think it was not an excuse, the wind. It was my head, my brain,'' Safina said. "I think the next match will be better.''
Safina went up 4-1 in the first set, but had to struggle through 2 hours, 36 minutes of tennis in swirling winds near 20 mph.
Patty Schnyder of Switzerland defeated Anabel Medina Garrigues of Spain 6-3, 6-2 in the first round of the Rogers Cup on Monday.
The 10th-seeded Schnyder was making her fifth appearance in the event, but first since 2002, when she lost in the second round to Daniela Hantuchova of Slovakia.
"I would never take matches as routine, because you always have to be aware of the opponent's weapons,'' Schnyder said. "I just went through nicely, like the court tells me. But yes, I had to stay focused, and handle the conditions, and it was not easy.''
Shahar Peer of Israel beat Michaella Krajicek of the Netherlands 7-5, 7-6 (7).
"I think I was just not playing,'' said Peer. "It's not that was playing good, and probably she was feeling the same. It's just that I made so many mistakes I didn't get to the ball proper, and I was just not in the match.''
Other players advancing Monday included Francesca Schiavone of Italy defeated Austria's Tamira Paszek 6-2, 2-6, 6-3, while Roberta Vinci, also of Italy, cruised to a 6-0, 6-0 win over Spain's Nuria Llagosteria Vives.
China's Peng Shuai defeated Denmark's Caroline Wozniacki 6-0, 6-7 (4), 6-2, and Italian Flavia Pennetta ousted Olga Poutchkova of Russia 6-3, 7-5.
No. 12 seed Tatiana Golovin of France beat Julia Vakulenko of Ukraine 6-2, 6-1; 14th-seeded Katarina Srebotnik of Slovakia beat Ukraine's Kateryna Bondarenko 5-7, 6-2, 6-2.
The top eight seeds had a bye into the second round of the $1.34-million tournament at the Rexall Centre at York University.