PARIS — French Open champion Stan Wawrinka raised his game when needed to beat Bernard Tomic and reach the third round of the Paris Masters Tuesday.
Wawrinka, who is bidding to become the first player to win Roland Garros and the Paris Masters the same year since Andre Agassi in 1999, saved all five break points and hit 13 aces to progress with a 6-3, 7-6 (6) win.
The fourth-seeded Swiss had to come from 5-2 down in the tiebreaker before sealing the match when the 18th-ranked Tomic hit two consecutive unforced errors.
"I was not in a good position, that's for sure," Wawrinka said. "I played one good point, aggressive, then he missed an easy forehand, and you're back."
Wawrinka, who has never advanced past the quarterfinals at the indoor tournament, will next face either 15th-seeded Feliciano Lopez or Viktor Troicki.
David Ferrer, the 2012 champion, also progressed to the third round by beating Alexandr Dogolpolov 6-2, 6-2.
The eighth-seeded Ferrer, who has qualified for the ATP finals, did not face a single break point. Next up for the 2012 champion will be either 12th-seeded Marin Cilic or Grigor Dimitrov.
Also, qualifier Edouard Roger-Vasselin ended Ivo Karlovic's chances of breaking the single-season record for aces. Karlovic hit 29 aces but lost 4-6, 7-6 (1), 7-6 (5), ending his season with 1,447 aces.
Goran Ivanisevic holds the record with 1,477 aces, set in 1996.
Karlovic had lost his last 10 deciding-set tiebreakers going into the match, and Roger-Vasselin extended that streak to 11.
The Paris Masters is the final regular-season tournament before the eight best players meet in London at the ATP World Tour Finals from Nov. 15-22.
Ferrer and Kei Nishikori booked the final two spots available at the elite event last week, joining top-ranked Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Roger Federer, Wawrinka, Rafael Nadal and Berdych.
Williams edges Keys
In Hong Kong, top seed Venus Williams opened the inaugural WTA Elite Trophy in southern China with a tight three-sets win over fellow American Madison Keys Tuesday.
The seven-time Grand Slam-winner came from a set down to win 3-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-1 as she seeks to end her season with a 48th career title. In another result, Jelena Jankovic of Serbia beat Sara Errani of Italy 6-4, 7-5.
The Elite Trophy, which follows last week's WTA Finals for the top eight women, is a new event featuring the players ranked nine-20 and held at a purpose-built facility in Zhuhai, which borders Macau.
The initial draw selected four pots of three players also including Caroline Wozniacki who will compete for the $2.5 million purse.
Williams, aged 35 and ranked 11th in the world, is enjoying an Indian summer in her career exemplified by her victory at last month's Wuhan Open. — Agencies
