Mauresmo's Marathon

In a nearly three-hour marathon, Amelie Mauresmo staved off a spirited upset bid from Estonia's Kaia Kanepi and won her first-round Pilot Pen Tennis tournament match, 6-2, 6-7 (3-7), 6-2, Tuesday afternoon on Stadium Court.

The No. 33-ranked Mauresmo won the first set rather easily, though a slew of double-faults towards the end of the set were a harbinger of things to come. Her troubles from the service line continued in the second set, and Kanepi jumped out to a 3-0 lead.

Mauresmo won the next five, but Kanepi rallied back to go up 6-5. Mauresmo tied it again, but Kanepi won the tiebreaker to send it to a third set.

Once again, it seemed nearly every game went to deuce as the two continued their long battle. Mauresmo broke Kanepi's serve to go up, 4-2, rallied from a 15-40 deficit to win the next game, then won the final game off deuce again.

Mauresmo, who won both Wimbledon and the Australian Open in 2006 but has battled injuries and illness since, will face Sweden's Patty Schnyder in the next round.

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