Azarenka pulls out

World No.1 Victoria Azarenka withdrew on Wednesday, with a bruised bone in her ankle, as the Dubai WTA Open lost both of its leading seeds in the space of three days.

Azarenka was scheduled to play Julia Goerges in the second round after a first-round bye but said that she was not willing to risk the injury which she said had bothered her since her title at the Australian Open.

No. 5 seed Agnieszka Radwanska beat Shahar Peer 7-5, 6-4 while eighth seed Jelena Jankovic put out Flavia Pennetta 6-4, 6-2.

At Marseille, Nikolay Davydenko hit nine aces as he beat Andreas Beck 6-1, 7-5 to in the first round of the Open 13. No. 5 seed Richard Gasquet also advanced after a 6-0, 6-2 win over Go Soeda.

Important results: At Dubai (Dubai WTA Open): Second round: Jelena Jankovic bt Flavia Pennetta 6-4, 6-2; Agnieszka Radwanska bt Shahar Peer 7-5, 6-4; Ana Ivanovic bt Maria Kirilenko 6-2, 7-6(4); Julia Goerges w/o Victoria Azarenka; Samantha Stosur bt Lucie Safarova 6-1, 6-7(5), 6-1; Sabine Lisicki bt Iveta Benesova 6-3, 6-3. First round: Shuai Peng bt Marion Bartoli 6-4, 6-3; Ivanovic bt Francesca Schiavone 6-1, 7-5; Daniela Hantuchova bt Polona Hercog 1-6, 7-5, 7-6(4); Simona Halep bt Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-4, 6-2.

At Marseille (ATP Open 13): Second round: Edouard Roger-Vasselin bt Flavio Cipolla 6-3, 6-0; First round: Oleksandr Dolgopolov Jr. bt Lukas Rosol 2-6, 7-6(1), 6-3; Karol Beck bt Paul-Henri Mathieu 7-6(2), 2-6, 6-3; Nikolay Davydenko bt Andreas Beck 6-1, 7-5; Richard Gasquet bt Go Soeda 6-0, 6-2.

At Memphis (ATP &WTA Memphis Open): Men: First round: John Isner bt Gilles Muller 7-6(1), 7-6(4); Sergiy Stakhovsky bt Robert Kendrick 6-3, 7-6(6); Ryan Sweeting bt James Blake 6-0, 6-2; Sam Querrey bt Alejandro Falla 2-6, 6-3, 6-4.

Women: Second round: Varvara Lepchenko bt Johanna Larsson 6-2, 6-4; Vera Dushevina bt Jamie Hampton 6-4, 6-3; Marina Erakovic bt Evgeniya Rodina 6-3, 6-4. First round: Ksenia Pervak bt Rebecca Marino 6-2, 6-4; Stephanie Foretz Gacon bt Melanie Oudin 6-2, 6-3; Pauline Parmentier bt Andrea Hlavackova 6-4, 4-6, 6-2.