Britain's Tim Henman made a swift and error-strewn exit from the Rome Masters, losing 6-2 6-1 to Argentine claycourt specialist Guillermo Coria today.
Henman, who beat Coria in their only previous meeting last year, has struggled to recapture his form after an operation for a shoulder injury and offered little resistance to the Argentine, who reached the final of the claycourt tournament in Monte Carlo in April.
Coria broke Henman's serve in the 15-minute opening game of the match, when the Briton pushed a mid-court forehand wide into the tramlines.
He broke again in the fifth game, taking advantage of a double fault and another wide forehand to go 4-1 ahead.
Henman's unforced errors continued in the second set, with Coria passing his opponent at the net to break in the first game.
At 40-15 up in the fifth game, Henman looked to have belatedly found his rhythm, but after failing to put away a smash his opponent fought back to advantage, and the Argentine chased down a drop volley to flick the ball down the line for a winner to go 4-1 up.
In the seventh game, a wild Henman forehand gave Coria match point, and the Briton made it easy for his opponent, double faulting to continue his recent poor run and extend his poor start to the year in which he has lost six of his eight matches.