Associated Press 10y

Juan Martin del Potro into quarters

Tennis

TOKYO -- Top-seeded Juan Martin del Potro advanced to the Japan Open quarterfinals with a comfortable 6-2, 6-2 win over fellow Argentine Carlos Berlocq on Wednesday.

Del Potro broke Berlocq's serve twice in the second set and closed out the match in 1 hour, 6 minutes. After Tuesday's three-set victory over Marcos Baghdatis, del Potro said it was good to find his rhythm.

"I played a lot better than yesterday," del Potro said. "I served well, my forehand was strong, and I was able to break his serve and be aggressive. I had control of the match all the time, which was important to me."

Del Potro was a late addition to the tournament after Andy Murray, the 2011 champion, withdrew due to a back injury. Del Potro is seeking his third title of the season following victories in Rotterdam and Washington.

In the day's only upset, Ivan Dodig of Croatia ousted second-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France 6-4, 7-6 (5).

In other matches, third-seeded Milos Raonic of Canada advanced to the second round with a 6-4, 7-6 (0) win over Go Soeda of Japan in the opening match on Center Court.

Raonic, coming off a win at the Thailand Open on Sunday, dominated Soeda with his serve, hitting 24 aces against the Japanese wild card.

"I served really well," Raonic said. "It was a bit earlier in the day than what I'm used to but I played well on the important points and did what I needed to do."

Raonic lost in the final of last year's tournament to local favorite Kei Nishikori, who will face Spain's Feliciano Lopez in the second round Thursday.

The fourth-seeded Nishikori is on the verge of becoming the first Japanese player to break into the top 10 and is bidding to win his second title of the season.

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