Mauresmo outplayed in first Eastbourne match

EASTBOURNE, England, June 21 (Reuters) Amelie Mauresmo's Wimbledon preparations hit the buffers today when she lost her first match at the Eastbourne grasscourt tournament to French Fed Cup team mate Nathalie Dechy.

The world number one was outplayed on a windy day at the English seaside, losing 3-6 6-2 6-3.

''It's always difficult to beat one of your best friends but it is the first time I have beaten the active world number one player so it is a special win,'' said Dechy.

Eastbourne debutante Justine Henin-Hardenne also found the conditions tricky. Fortunately for the French Open champion, her Czech opponent Kveta Peschke had even more trouble and Henin-Hardenne prevailed 6-2 6-1 in 61 minutes.

Kim Clijsters's first match in the defence of her title lasted just 10 minutes before her opponent Vera Zvonareva retired with a foot injury.

The strong breezes unsettled Dechy at first but, with a first-round win over Israeli Shahar Peer behind her, the world number 21 grew in confidence as the match progressed.

Mauresmo, the Australian Open champion, was tasting the difficult conditions for the first time after having a first-round bye.

In the deciding set she went 5-1 down before breaking Dechy to stay in the match.

Dechy served for victory again at 5-3 and swiftly earned herself three match points, cashing in the first when Mauresmo put a cross-court backhand out.

In the quarter-finals, Dechy will play fifth-seeded Russian Anastasia Myskina, who beat American Jill Craybas 6-4 6-4.

Dechy, a regular at Eastbourne, said the wind often made playing difficult. ''It is not easy to get your timing in these kind of conditions,'' she said.

ZVONAREVA INJURED Both Henin-Hardenne and Peschke struggled and the second set featured five breaks of serve before the Belgian world number three set up a quarter-final against Russian Elena Likhovtseva.

World number two Clijsters looked confident on the Devonshire Park centre court, racing to a 3-0 lead in the second-round match.

Russian Zvonareva, who won the Birmingham grasscourt event on Sunday, slipped over at the end of the second game and lasted one more game before calling on the trainer to examine her right foot.

''She said she had hurt her toes in Birmingham last week and I think they were a little bit sore,'' Clijsters told reporters.

''They were strapped up.'' The Belgian hopes to improve on last year's fourth-round finish at Wimbledon, which starts next Monday, and was disappointed not to get a full match.

''It was a great feeling that I had out there, it is just a shame that it couldn't last a little bit longer,'' said Clijsters, 23.

Clijsters, a semi-finalist at the French and Australian Opens this year, will play sixth seed Francesca Schiavone in the quarter-finals after the Italian beat Japan's Akiko Morigami 6-0 6-2.

REUTERS DH PM2129