U.S. Open champ Cilic loses in season debut

Marin Cilic practices during last
year's BNP Paribas Open at Indian
Wells. Photo by Paul Bauman

   Marin Cilic, the reigning U.S. Open champion, made his season debut on Saturday against a former top-10 player.
   Not surprisingly, Cilic lost.
   Argentina's Juan Monaco, who will turn 31 on March 29, eliminated the 10th-seeded Cilic 6-4, 6-4 in the second round of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells. Cilic received a first-round bye.
   Cilic, a 6-foot-6 (1.98-meter) right-hander, is recovering from a sore right shoulder.
   "(The shoulder) is getting there," he told reporters. "I didn't feel completely painless ... just a little rusty."  
   Also losing on Saturday was ninth-seeded Andrea Petkovic. The 27-year-old German fell to qualifier Lesia Tsurenko of Ukraine 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 in the second round after drawing a first-round bye.
   It's the second straight year that Petkovic has lost to a qualifier in her opening match at Indian Wells. She was ousted by Camila Giorgi of Italy in 2014.
   Petkovic reached the semifinals of last summer's Bank of the West Classic at Stanford before losing to Serena Williams, who went on to win her third title in the tournament.