Gonzalez in shock loss to qualifier

Barcelona: Fernando Gonzalez's hopes for a successful claycourt season were dented when he suffered a shock 6-4 6-7 6-3 second round loss to Spanish qualifier Albert Ramos-Vinolas at the Barcelona Open on Wednesday.

After falling a set behind, the fourth-seeded Chilean Gonzalez, ranked almost 150 places higher than the 22-year-old left-hander, looked to have clawed his way back into the match by winning the second-set tiebreak 10-8.

But Ramos-Vinolas responded to the roars of support from the local fans to grab one crucial break of serve in the decider and set up a last-16 clash with Latvia's Ernests Gulbis.

A minute's silence was observed before David Ferrer's match against Spanish compatriot Marcel Granollers following the death of former International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Juan Antonio Samaranch.

A Barcelona native, the 89-year-old was a member of the club where the tournament is being held.

Eighth seed Ferrer beat Granollers 7-5 6-4 and Juan Carlos Ferrero also went through when his Ukrainian opponent Sergiy Stakhovsky retired. The Spaniard was leading 6-3 4-2.

"I have a good feeling and the truth is I am playing some solid tennis," said the in-form Ferrero. "With [Rafael] Nadal out it means things are a bit more open."

Nadal, who has triumphed in Barcelona for the past five years, opted to skip the event to give his body a rest. Lleyton Hewitt, however, will not be around to take advantage of Nadal's absence as his comeback from hip surgery stalled when he lost 7-6 6-4 to Eduardo Schwank.

The 29-year-old Australian, who has played only one tournament since the operation at the end of January, was twice broken by the 59th-ranked Argentine and misses out on a possible last-eight clash with French Open runner-up Robin Soderling.

French third seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga bounced Czech Jan Hajek 6-3 6-2 and will next play Spanish 15th seed Nicolas Almagro, whom he defeated last week in Monte Carlo.

Results

Barcelona Open men's singles (prefix denotes seeding):

16-Feliciano Lopez (Spain) beat Denis Istomin (Uzbekistan) 7-6(7) 7-5. 5-Fernando Verdasco (Spain) beat Richard Gasquet (France) 7-5 6-3. Simone Bolelli (Italy) beat Alberto Martin (Spain) 7-6(2) 7-6(1). Albert Ramos (Spain) beat 4-Fernando Gonzalez (Chile) 6-4 6-7(8) 6-3. 7-Juan Carlos Ferrero (Spain) beat Sergiy Stakhovsky (Ukraine) 6-3 4-2 (Stakhovsky retired). 13-Thomaz Bellucci (Brazil) beat Victor Hanescu (Romania) 6-2 1-6 7-5. 8-David Ferrer (Spain) beat Marcel Granollers (Spain) 7-5 6-4. 11-Juergen Melzer (Austria) beat Oscar Hernandez (Spain) 6-7(4) 7-5 7-5. Ernests Gulbis (Latvia) beat Jeremy Chardy (France) 6-3 6-2. 3-Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (France) beat Jan Hajek (Czech Republic) 6-3 6-2. Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (Spain) beat Teimuraz Gabashvili (Russia) 1-6 7-6(5) 6-4. Eduardo Schwank (Argentina) beat 12-Lleyton Hewitt (Australia) 7-6(3) 6-4. Thiemo de Bakker (Netherlands) beat Daniel Gimeno-Traver (Spain) 7-6(5) 6-3.