Russia's Svetlana Kuznetsova booked her place in the second round at Stuttgart's WTA event on Wednesday as the fifth seed was taken to three sets by local heroine Andrea Petkovic.
Having earned herself a match point in the second, the Russian was broken back by the plucky German and eventually lost the second set before going on to win 6-4, 5-7, 6-1 as the game lasted just over two hours.
"It was a game of ups and downs, especially in the second set," said Kuznetsova, ranked ninth in the world. "I was disappointed with my serves and then I blew the chance to win the game early. "I should have taken both the first two sets and then it went to a third."
Kuznetsova plays China's Na Li in the second round on Thursday and said she was looking forward to another tough match as the pair played each other three times last year while Li handed the Russian an early exit from the Olympics.
"It is going to be a tough match, I played her a lot last year," said the Russian who has beaten Li five times in total on the WTA tour to the Chinese player's two wins. "I have to be more focused than I was today and concentrate harder."
Russian compatriot and last year's finalist Nadia Petrova also made it into the second round after beating China's Jie Zheng 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 in a marathon game which lasted just under two and a half hours.
Sixth-seed Petrova hit 13 aces, but was broken in the second set while her Chinese opponent defended both her break points before the Russian dominated the third set.
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