AUCKLAND, New Zealand (AP)—Former champion Philipp Kohlschreiber overcame a slow start to beat Carlos Berlocq of Argentina 2-6, 6-3, 6-1 in the first round of the Heineken Open.
Kohlschreiber, the No. 8 seed and 2008 champion, arrived in Auckland after losing in three sets to Ivo Karlovic in the second round of the Qatar Open, and looked tired in the opening set.
But he completely swung the match in the second set, taking an early break and serving strong to level the match. He then survived a break point to take the final set in 32 minutes.
Earlier, Tommy Robredo of Spain also came from a set down to beat New Zealand wild card Michael Venus 6-7 (6), 6-3, 6-0.
In the only other main draw match on Monday, Santiago Giraldo of Colombia beat Daniel Gimeno-Traver of Spain 6-2, 6-4, improving his singles record to 3-1 in 2011 after he reached the quarterfinals of last week’s Brisbane International.