Raonic breezes in Cinci

Federer wins, Serena loses in U.S. Open warmup event

MASON, Ohio — Roger Federer made a successful return to the Western & Southern Open on Tuesday.

It wasn’t such a great day for Serena Williams.

Federer advanced to the third round with a 6-4, 6-4 victory against Peter Gojowczyk, and Williams was eliminated by eighthseeded Petra Kvitova in a 6-3, 2-6, 6-3 second-round loss.

Federer and Williams were making their first appearance at the tournament since they each won the title in 2015. Williams opened with a straight-sets victory against Daria Gavrilova.

After a first-round bye, Federer extended his Cincinnati winning streak to 11 matches since losing to Rafael Nadal in the 2013 quarterfinals.

“It doesn’t feel like I have been away for so long here from Cincinnati,” Federer said. “I guess the wheel keeps turning. It’s not like I missed two years of tennis. It was a great pleasure to be back.”

Among Canadians, two-time semifinalist Milos Raonic advanced with a 6-3, 6-3 win over qualifier Dusan Lajovic.

The second-seeded Federer, refreshed from a month off after losing in the Wimbledon quarterfinals, became the tournament favourite when Nadal withdrew on Sunday night.

Williams also was knocked out in her last tournament at San Jose two weeks ago. Karolina Pliskova and Nick Kyrgios also advanced Tuesday in early action.

Pliskova moved into the second round by snapping a seven-match losing streak against Agnieszka Radwanska with a 6-3, 6-3 win. “It means a lot because it was against her, and, like, you know, I never beat her,” Pliskova said.

— The Associated Press