February 18th

Juan Ignacio Chela inflicted Magnus Norman's second consecutive first-round defeat since his return from a six-month injury layoff last week with a convincing straight-sets win at the Copa AT & T in Buenos Aires Monday. Norman secured an early break in the first set to lead 2-1, but Chela won 11 of the next 14 games to win 6-3, 6-2.

Chela said: "I'm more happy with the result than with my game. It's always important to beat players of the quality of Magnus Norman. Even though he wasn't playing at his best, it was an important win. I wasn't happy with my game at the net; every time I attacked him I lost the point. I also need to improve my first serve percentage. I would like to win the tournament, although I'm in the toughest part of the draw.

Norman, the 2000 Roland Garros finalist who underwent hip surgery in August last year, said: "I'm feeling better and better. I'm not feeling any pain, I just need more rhythm."

Argentine Jose Acasuso advanced to the second round when he upset fourth seed and Tennis Masters Series Hamburg champion Albert Portas 6-3, 6-4. Acasuso, 19, reached the Buenos Aires final last year. He began the South American swing positively last week by reaching the quarterfinals in Vina del Mar.

"I played very well and I'm very happy," Acasuso said. "I won two very good matches last week and that gave me a lot of confidence coming here. I hope I can play like this in the next match. I try not to think about the pressure of playing in Buenos Aires. If I had done that last year I would have been nervous and may not have done so well. The big improvement I've made has been my mental approach; I'm playing with a lot more concentration now."