tennis

Top seed Mladenovic injured at Samsung Open

Updated Mar. 5, 2020 12:30 a.m. ET

LUGANO, Switzerland (AP) Top seed Kristina Mladenovic retired with a back injury in the first round of the weather-affected Samsung Open on Thursday.

Mladenovic was trailing 7-6 (5), 3-2 against Tamara Korpatsch, a German qualifier ranked 157 places below the No. 19 Frenchwoman, when she withdrew.

The clay-court event has been hard hit by rain and two more top players lost first-round matches Thursday.

Fifth seed Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia was beaten 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 by Germany's Mona Barthel in a match that started Wednesday.

Fourth seed Anett Kontaveit of Estonia also lost 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 to Vera Lapko of Belarus.

Indoor courts have been used at Lugano to get the first round completed. Friday's schedule calls for second-round winners to play their quarterfinals later in the day.

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