Latest on US Open: Wozniacki avoids upset, wins 1st match

NEW YORK (AP) — The latest on the U.S. Open (all times local):

2:15 p.m.

Caroline Wozniacki got herself quickly off the court on a scorching day at the U.S. Open.

The fourth-seeded Dane, last year's runner-up, beat NCAA champion Jamie Loeb 6-2, 6-0 in 67 minutes Tuesday in the first round, never in danger of becoming another upset victim on the women's side.

The 20-year-old Loeb earned a wild card into the draw by winning the college title as a sophomore at North Carolina. She made her Grand Slam debut after recently turning pro.

After Wozniacki's win, seeded women were just 12-9 so far. Add in Maria Sharapova's withdrawal, and 10 of the 32 seeds are already out before the second round.

Just four seeded women's players lost in the first round last year. Since the tournament started seeding 32 players in 2000, the largest number of women's seeds to lose in the opening round was 10 in 2012.

Sixth-seeded Lucie Safarova, who was upset earlier Tuesday, said she was bothered by a strained abdominal muscle on her right side that she hurt in losing the New Haven final Saturday. Safarova is pulling out of doubles, where she and American Bethanie Mattek-Sands would have been among the favorites after winning the Australian and French Opens this year.

___

12:15 p.m.

Half of the top 10 seeds in the women's draw are already out of the U.S. Open.

The second day of the tournament started just like the first, with sixth-seeded Lucie Safarova the one getting upset this time. The French Open runner-up had a tough first-round matchup against 37th-ranked Lesia Tsurenko and lost 6-4, 6-1 in just 65 minutes Tuesday.

Seventh-seeded Ana Ivanovic, eighth-seeded Karolina Pliskova and 10th-seeded Carla Suarez Navarro were all eliminated Monday, a day after third-seeded Maria Sharapova withdrew because of a leg injury.

Safarova had defeated Tsurenko in straight sets in New Haven just four days earlier. She went on to lose a three-setter to Petra Kvitova in the title match Saturday.

Tsurenko had been playing well on the hard courts this summer to reach a career-best ranking this week. The 26-year-old from Ukraine upset Pliskova to make the New Haven semis, where she fell to Safarova. Before that, she upset Wimbledon runner-up Garbine Muguruza in advancing to the quarterfinals in Toronto.

The U.S. Open is the only major tournament at which Safarova has never reached the quarterfinals. The Czech lefty took Serena Williams to three sets in the French Open final.

Second-seeded Simona Halep avoided the upset bug Tuesday, moving on in 47 minutes when Marina Erakovic retired in the second set. Halep was leading 6-2, 3-0.

That adds to the seven retirements Monday, which the ITF said matched the Open era record for the most in one day at a major.