MELBOURNE, Australia(AP) Jo-Wilfried Tsonga returned to the scene of his greatest performance in a Grand Slam, and it felt pretty good.
Tsonga beat Juan Monaco of Argentina 6-4, 6-4, 6-0 Tuesday in a first-round match at the Australian Open. Last year, when he was unseeded and recognized more for his uncanny resemblance to boxing great Muhammad Ali, he beat Rafael Nadal in the semifinals but lost to Novak Djokovic in the final.
I had exactly the same feeling, yeah, it's really a good feeling to be back here,'' Tsonga said Tuesday.I hope it will continue.''
Tsonga beat Andy Murray in the first round last year at Rod Laver Arena, just across the way from the second show court that he beat Monaco on Tuesday. His later wins over Nadal and the finals loss to Djokovic came at the featured Rod Laver venue.
Tsonga says he's recovered from a sore back that forced him to default from his quarterfinal match last week at Sydney. He also advanced to the quarterfinals the week before at the Brisbane International.
``I played without pain. So it was a nice match.''
Tsonga joined four other Frenchman in the top 30 in the rankings - him at 7, Gilles Simon at 8, Gael Monfils 13, Richard Gasquet 24 and Paul-Henri Mathieu at 28.
Simon, Monfils and Gasquet also won their first-round matches Tuesday, joined for good measure by Sebastien De Chaunac, a French qualifier.
Tsonga was asked if he thought his Australian Open performance last year might have spurred French tennis on to better things.
Yes, maybe,'' he said.Since this moment, all the French players have played better.''
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COURTING A WIN: Elena Dementieva glanced around when she was down 5-2 in the first set and remembered where she was. The memory wasn't good.
Three years ago, when the Hisense Arena was known as Vodafone Arena, Dementieva lost her first-round match there at the Australian Open.
I was like, 'Oh, no, it's going to happen again,''' the 2008 Olympic gold medalist said.I was worried.''
She rallied to beat Kristina Barrois of Germany 7-6 (4), 2-6, 6-1.
It was a very tough match, especially because of the weather,'' said Dementieva, who played in 104-degree heat.And also it was not easy for me to come here after playing so many matches in a row.''
Dementieva beat fellow Russian Dinara Safina in the Sydney International final on the weekend, a rematch of the Olympic final, and entered the season's first major on a 10-match winning streak.
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BACK STOPPING: Andrei Pavel's back injury was there for everyone at Rod Laver Arena to see. The ATP trainer went out, rubbed Pavel's lower back, Pavel tried to continue, then had to retire. This time, it was for good.
Game, set and match to fourth-seeded Andy Murray 6-2, 3-1, 15-0, and another injury withdrawal for Romania's Pavel, who has struggled with back pain for eight years.
Not just any ordinary pain, the L5 vertebrae is pinching the nerve.
Pavel hasn't considered surgery. And he didn't want to compare himself with cyclist Lance Armstrong, the 37-year-old seven-time Tour de France winner who is making a comeback from retirement.
No, no. I don't want to have surgery on my back,'' Pavel said.You know, what for? I'm 35 years old in few days. What am I, Armstrong? No, I'm not.
``I wish him good luck, though, because he is amazing, amazing guy.''
The loss to Murray was likely his last match. With a ranking of 1,141, he relied on a protected ranking - granted because of his chronic back condition - to get into the main draw in Australia.
I don't want to try it again,'' he said.I don't want to damage my health. I played in enough tournaments, I guess.''
Pavel, who has three ATP singles titles and seven in doubles, said he hoped things would go differently this year.
My plan was to play those Grand Slams, just have fun out there, and then go to Bucharest, home, and just in front of my home crowd to just end my career,'' he said.But it doesn't always go like you planned.''
His best performance at a Grand Slam in 39 appearances was reaching the quarterfinals at the 2002 French Open.
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'PROJECT 45': The youngest man in last year's top 100 rankings said he will continue his quest to become Japan's highest ever ranked men's player despite his disappointing loss in the first round of his first Australian Open.
Kei Nishikori, who turned 19 last month, lost to Austrian Jurgen Melzer 7-5, 6-2, 6-1 after being up 5-3 in the first set.
I went too fast, I guess, tried to win too early,'' he said.Too many unforced errors. I had so many chances.''
Nishikori, who won his first ATP title last year at Delray Beach, trains at the Bollettieri Academy in Florida, where he has been given the nickname ``Project 45'' because his main goal is to reach No. 45 in the rankings, one better than the Japanese record of 46 set by Shuzo Matsuoka in 1992. Matsuoka was a Wimbledon quarterfinalist in 1995.
Nishikori is the first Japanese man to finish in the top 100 since Matsuoka. But he played down the nickname at a news conference Tuesday attended by dozens of Japanese media.
It's one of my goals, but it's not like (my) final goal,'' he told them.I count my ranking sometimes but no, it doesn't give me pressure.''
Nishikori finished at No. 63 - moving up more than 200 ranking spots - after his win at Delray Beach.
Nishikori made his Grand Slam debut at Wimbledon last year but retired in the first match after a stomach injury. He made it to the fourth round at the U.S. Open.