Nishikori upset

Thomaz Bellucci upset topseeded Kei Nishikori 6-4 6-3 in the first round of the Rio Open, thrilling the home tennis crowd on Carnival week in Rio de Janeiro. Nishikori, who lost the Argentina Open final on Monday on clay, smashed his racket on the red clay after losing yesterday’s first set. It didn’t get any better. He was broken in the first game of the second and never really recovered. Brazilian Belluci had lost his previous two matches against Nishikori, who has lost all six of his singles finals since winning the Memphis Open a year ago. In another first-round match, No 4 seed Pablo Carreno Busta, of Spain, defeated Brazil’s Joao Souza 6-3 6-2.