India's Sania Mirza defeated Italy's Tathiana Garbin to reach the second round of the $1.3 million Acura Classic tennis tournament here.

Mirza, ranked 59 in the world, won her match 6-2, 6-2 Tuesday.

The 18-year-old from the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh won her country's first WTA title earlier this season at home.

US Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova struggled more than she might have wished before pulling out a 7-5, 6-3 opening victory against Czech Klara Koukalova at the $1.3 million Acura Classic.

Kuznetsova, the world number four with a second seeding at this golfing resort, needed a late break to lift the opening set against her 33rd-ranked opponent.

The win came during the Russian's first appearance since losing in the Wimbledon quarter-finals to eventual runner-up Lindsay Davenport, missing from this event as holder along with Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova - all due to injuries.

Kuznetsova improved to 26-11 on the season, but still won just one trophy, at Warsaw on clay in the spring. Klouklova is posting her best career season, winning a grass title in the Netherlands in the run-up to Wimbledon. Kuznetsova advanced into a third-round match against either Daniela Hantuchova or Ai Sugiyama.

Kuznetsova bemoans here lack of top results this season, but says that she is slowly turning the corner.

"I was tired last year, it was really hard," said the Grand Slam champion with a title to defend this month in New York. "I didn't have much time to recover.

"I've cut my schedule this year, I didn't play Fed Cup. I think the results will come."

China's Shuai Peng added another major Russian to her 2005 victim's list with a 7-5, 6-4 upset of third seed Elena Dementieva.

The 19-year-old Asian outsider had made a fast rise this season after starting at 80th to now stand just five places off her career best on 46th in the world.

She has now accounted for both finalists at last year's French Open after beating runner-up Dementiava six months after knocking out former Roland Garros champion Anastasia Myskina in Sydney.

"I didn't think too much in my first match (Monday)." said the winner, 15-10 this season who was unable to play at Wimbledon due to the quadrennial Chinese national games held in June.

"I just fought for every point against a good player. She's sixth in the world and a two-time Grand Slam finalist," said Peng. "Of course I wanted to play Wimbledon, it was tough to miss."