MASON, Ohio,  (Reuters) – World number one Rafael Nadal  moved into the third round of the Cincinnati Masters with a 6-2  7-5 victory over American Taylor Dent yesterday.

Third seed Novak Djokovic and fourth seed Andy Murray both  got through their opening games but in the first real upset of  the tournament, Nadal’s compatriot Fernando Verdasco, seeded  eighth, lost to 36th-ranked American Mardy Fish.

Journeyman Dent, ranked 83rd in the world, struggled in the  first set but the 29-year-old’s serve improved noticeably in  the second and he threatened to make life complicated for Nadal  when he broke and went 4-2 up in the second.

The Spaniard swiftly broke back and then broke again to go  6-5 up before serving out for the match.

Nadal will face Julien Benneteau in the next round after  the Frenchman defeated Switzerland’s Stanislas Wawrinka 6-4  6-2.
Fish, who has credited his recent surge in form to weight  loss, entered the tournament on a wildcard but played some  inspired, attacking tennis to beat Verdasco in two tiebreaks.

Murray, coming off his win at the Toronto Masters on  Sunday, needed three sets before getting by Frenchman Jeremy  Chardy 6-3 6-7 6-2.

After a routine first set, Murray was unable to maintain  his rhythm against an aggressive opponent who made 53 unforced  errors but hit 44 winners. The Scot regained his dominance in  the third after Chardy took a medical timeout for foot  treatment.