Beijing, China (Sports Network) - Last week's Bangkok champion Richard Gasquet
was ousted by little-known Chinese Ze Zhang on Thursday at the $2.2 million
China Open.
The fifth-seeded world No. 14 Gasquet succumbed to the 165th-ranked wild card
Zhang in 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 fashion in 2 hours, 9 minutes on the hardcourts at
the National Tennis Centre.
The sweet-swinging Frenchman Gasquet secured his first ATP title in more than
two years last week in Thailand.
In some other second-round action, Russian Mikhail Youzhny handled South
African Kevin Anderson 6-3, 6-3, American Sam Querrey topped Italian Andreas
Seppi 6-1, 6-4, and Spaniard Feliciano Lopez bested Taiwan's Yen-Hsun Lu 6-3,
7-6 (9-7).
Friday's quarterfinals in Beijing will pit world No. 1 Novak Djokovic against
Austrian left-hander Jurgen Melzer; third-seeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
versus Youzhny; Querrey against the southpaw Lopez; and German Florian Mayer
versus the 22-year-old Zhang.
The Serbian star Djokovic was the back-to-back China Open champion in 2009
and 2010. He also captured this year's Australian Open and was the runner-up
at the 2012 French and U.S. Opens.
The 2012 Beijing champ will earn $530,570.
The Sports Network