Mardy Fish took his first-round match at the U.S. Open against unseeded Go Soeda of Japan in straight sets, 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (7-2), 6-3.
Fish, the No. 23 seed, advances to face Nikolay Davydenko in the second round. Davydenko took his first-round match in four sets.
The Boca Raton resident has a chance to make a decent run in Flushing Meadows, but the wily veteran Davydenko, who holds 21 career singles titles, will be a tough out. Provided he advances, Fish could see Spaniard Fernando Verdasco, though No. 1 seed Roger Federer is the clear favorite in this draw.
Fish has put up mixed results at this year's Grand Slam events. He was ousted in the second round of January's Australian Open by Alejandro Falla, but did make it to the fourth round of Wimbledon before falling to No. 5 seed Jo Wilfried-Tsonga. He did not play in the French Open.
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