The Czech tennis player Tomas Berdych has become the first big casualty of the U.S. Open after being outclassed 7-6 6-4 6-4 by France's Michael Llodra.
Llodra, a doubles specialist, used serve-and-volley tactics to increasingly take a stranglehold over the number seven seed during the first-round match in New York.
Berdych, runner-up at Wimbledon this year and a semi-finalist at the French Open in June, struggled to match his French rival's tactics as the contest wore on.
Not even a medical timeout in the second set after Llodra landed awkwardly could curtail his progress into the second round.