Shanghai Daily | 上海日报 -- English Window to China News

FRENCH Open champion Rafael Nadal had little trouble adjusting to grass, dispatching Jonas Bjorkman 6-2, 6-2 on Wednesday to advance to the third round of the Artois Championships at Queen's Club.

The top-seeded Nadal arrived in London on Monday - a day after lifting the French Open trophy for the fourth time - to begin preparing for Wimbledon.

He practiced on grass and competed in doubles on Tuesday. The Spaniard, who had a bye in the first round of singles, was in control throughout against the 36-year-old Swede, winning in just over an hour without losing serve.

"The first day, the sensation is a little bit strange," Nadal said. "But for sure, this tournament is very important. If I can have a very good result here, it is going to be very important for me."

Second-seeded Novak Djokovic saved three set points in the second-set tiebreaker before overcoming Croatia's Roko Karanusic 6-2, 7-6 (7). The Serb was broken at 5-4 before claiming victory on his first match point in the tiebreaker with a backhand drop shot.

Andy Roddick showed no lingering effects of the shoulder injury that kept him out of the French Open, rallying to defeat American compatriot Robby Ginepri 6-7 (6), 6-1, 6-1.

The third-seeded defending champion, bidding for a fifth Queen's title in six years, had not played since retiring with the injury at the Rome Masters semifinals on May 10.

Lleyton Hewitt, who also is bidding for a fifth Queen's title, eased past Xavier Malisse 6-3, 6-2, and No. 5 Richard Gasquet advanced with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Simone Bolelli.

In Halle, Germany, Roger Federer shook off his lopsided 1-6, 3-6, 0-6 French Open final loss, running his winning streak on grass to 55 matches with a 6-4, 6-2 victory on Wednesday over Michael Berrer at the Gerry Weber Open.

The top-ranked Federer dropped just one point on his serve in the first set against the 89th-ranked German player in his first match since Sunday's heavy defeat to Nadal at Roland Garros.

Federer, a four-time winner at Halle, overwhelmed his opponent with precise shots and closed with an ace in a 61-minute Wimbledon warmup.

"My reaction was good, my movement was good, I'm very happy with my first-round performance," Federer said. "This wasn't necessarily expected, the preparation on grass was very short."

Federer won his 21st straight match at Halle, a streak that began in 2003. His first four Wimbledon titles came after he won in Halle.

The two players seeded behind him had mixed luck on Wednesday.

James Blake rallied for a 4-6, 7-5, 6-3 win over Benjamin Becker, but defending champion Tomas Berdych went down 2-6, 5-7 to Robin Soderling.

In Birmingham, England, top-seeded Marion Bartoli of France crashed out of her opening match of the DFS Classic on Wednesday and is a major doubt for this year's Wimbledon because of a nagging wrist injury.

Bartoli, who was the runner-up at Wimbledon last year, lost the second-round match 7-5, 4-6, 0-6 to the 52-ranked Petra Cetkovska, and said her wrist has been hampering her play.

"It's been bothering me since before the French Open," Bartoli said. "I've been having treatment but it's tendinitis, and there is only so much you can do for that." Other seeds to lose were No. 11 Casey Dellacqua, No. 6 Sania Mirza and No. 7 Olga Govortsova.