Wednesday, July 12 2006 15:32 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Newport: Top-seeded Scottish teen Andy Murray saved five match points and outlasted Brazil's Ricardo Mello 6-1, 1-6, 7-6 (7/5) Tuesday in a first-round match at the ATP Hall of Fame Championship.

Murray, rated a career-best 35th after a fourth-round run at Wimbledon, nearly joined second seed Ivo Karlovic of Croatia and US third seed Paul Goldstein on the day's scrap heap before denying Mello his first win on grass.

After breaking Mello in the 10th game when the Brazilian was serving for the match, Murray surrendered his own serve and gave away the first point of the 12th game to Mello with a point penalty for a code violation.

The 19-year-old British prodigy shook off the incident to win the next three points but Mello responded with three in a row of his own for the first of four match points in the 12th game that Murray would rescue.

Murray saved Mello's final match-point chance, then created his fifth break-point chance of the game and won it to force a decisive tie-breaker.

Streaky play continued to the very end. Murray jumped ahead 3-0, Mello responded by winning the next five points and Murray rallied to claim the last four points and the match after two hours and two minutes.

Murray, trying to become the first top-seeded player in more than 30 years to win the Newport crown, advanced to a second-round match against US wild card Sam Querrey, who eliminated Thailand's Danai Udomchoke 6-4, 6-3.

Second seed Karlovic was one of two players forced to quit their matches due to injury. Swiss standout George Bastl eliminated Karlovic 6-7 (2/7), 6-4, 4-2 when a left knee injury forced Karlovic out. Denmark's Kristian Pless advanced 7-6 (7/2) when American Michael Russell pulled out with a left ankle injury.

Australians Mark Philippoussis and Wayne Arthurs advanced with straight-set triumphs. Philippoussis, a wild-card entrant in the 380,000-dollar grass-court event, ousted US third seed Paul Goldstein 6-4, 6-2 while qualifier Arthurs outlasted Denmark's Kenneth Carlsen 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (8/6).

Next up for Arthurs will be US eighth seed Justin Gimelstob, who beat South African qualifier Wesley Whitehouse 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.