ATP

• Federer falls; Murray tops Roddick in Masters Cup opener

  
  

  Shanghai, China (Sports Network) - Two-time defending champion Roger Federer dropped his opening round-robin match on Monday, while U.S. Open runner-up Andy Murray beat Andy Roddick at the $4.45 million Tennis Masters Cup.

  Frenchman Gilles Simon pulled off a big upset with a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 triumph over the top-seeded, former world No. 1 Federer, who is now 0-2 lifetime against Simon, with the other setback coming at a Masters Series event in Toronto back in July.

  Simon pulled off the stunner in 2 hours, 7 minutes with the help of seven aces. He also broke Federer's serve on three occasions, compared to only two breaks for the mighty Swiss.

  The eighth-seeded Simon only became part of the exclusive eight-man field here after world No. 1 Rafael Nadal withdrew because of a knee injury and fatigue last week.

  Simon, making his Masters Cup debut, is 1-0 in the four-player Red Group, while Federer is 0-1.

  Federer, a four-time champion at this season-ending tournament, is the only former winner in this year's field.

  The reigning five-time U.S. Open champ lost for only the fourth time in 30 lifetime matches at this event, and for the second straight year dropped his opener in round-robin play.

  The Swiss superstar can still win the tournament -- as he did last year after an early loss -- if he earns one of the two spots in the semifinals from his round-robin group. The other players in the Red Group are Murray and the former top-ranked Roddick.

  The 13-time major champion Federer beat Spaniard David Ferrer in last year's finale in Shanghai.

  A third-seeded Murray remained hot with a 6-4, 1-6, 6-1 decision over the former world No. 1 Roddick, who's seeded fifth this week. Murray, making his Masters Cup debut, moved to 1-0 in the Red Group, while Roddick is 0-1.

  Murray handled Roddick in 1 hour, 35 minutes. The Brit broke Roddick's powerful serve three times, while the American could manage only two breaks in defeat. The Brit also out-aced Roddick, 9-3.

  The 21-year-old Murray is now 5-3 all-time versus Roddick.

  Murray has now won 15 of his last 16 matches, including a pair of titles in St. Petersburg and Madrid.

  On Tuesday, Gold Group action will be the order of the day, as second-seeded Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic of Serbia (1-0) takes on fourth-seeded Russian Nikolay Davydenko (1-0) and sixth-seeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (0-1) battles seventh-seeded Argentine Juan Martin del Potro (0-1). The Aussie Open runner-up and Paris Masters titlist Tsonga and del Potro are making their Masters Cup debuts this week.

  11/10 10:20:22 ET