Owen Casey couldn't and didn't harbour too many complaints. For two sets he was afforded an opportunity to cultivate a sensation before Goran Ivanisevic divested himself of the mental baggage that afflicted his tennis and provided Croatia with the perfect start to their Davis Cup tie at Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club yesterday.

Ivanisevic, a three-times Wimbledon finalist, would not have enjoyed the relatively slow pace of the heavily-sanded courts, nor the balls which he described as "empty stones" in the build-up to the match. Struggling with his movement initially, the ancillary aspects of the tennis seemed to prey on his mind. In the opening two sets he struggled to muster the necessary authority to his play, only occasionally opening his shoulders to hit out.

Instead he appeared content to rally from the back of the court but would subsequently lose patience and it generally precipitated an unforced error. In mitigation, Casey demonstrated his excellent competitive match pedigree, varying the length, pace and height of his ground strokes to deny his opponent a rhythm.

The Irishman said the opening set proved an "opportunity lost" as he broke Ivanisevic's serve twice only to concede his own serve on three occasions. The Croatian toughed it out winning the set, 7-5. The definitive break came in the 11th game which included the despised ITF ruling that demands a decisive point at deuce - there is no advantage point in Davis Cup. Both players described the ruling as a disgrace.

It would haunt Casey for the entire match. Leading 40-30 on serve, Ivanisevic tied the scores with an easy smash and then secured the game with a brace of big forehands, the first opening up the court, the second applying the finish. To his credit Casey worked hard on serve having to survive only one deuce while creating chances in two separate games on his opponent's.

A great forehand-volley winner edged Casey ahead at 5-4 and three magnificent backhand winners gave him 0-40 on the Ivanisevic serve. Two service winners edged the Croatian closer before Casey chipped and charged the net forcing his opponent into a forehand error and the concession of the set. Unfortunately for the small knot of Irish supporters, it served to galvanise Ivanisevic.

Mentally and physically becoming more attuned to his surroundings, the Croatian improved and crucially he played the big points better. Casey lost sevens games in the last two sets on the winner-takes-all point after deuce. Ivanisevic profited from his ability to produce the big serve, managing 24 aces during the match.

Ivanisevic claimed the last two sets 6-2, 6-2, a scoreline that offers scant justice to Casey's battling qualities. In the second singles, Scott Barron produced a scintillating start breaking Mario Ancic, the beaten finalist at the recent Junior Wimbledon, twice to take a 3-0 lead. The 16-year-old Croatian battled back to 4-5 but failed to capitalise on a break point as Barron responded with two clattering forehands to close out his serve and the set, 6-4.

It was to prove a high point for the Irish number one. Ancic, having discovered a rhythm on his ground strokes, particularly an exceptional forehand, raced through the second set 6-1 and took the third 6-4. Barron was limited to sporadic excellence - a couple of thumping ground strokes - but he conceded two many soft points.

The seventh game of the fourth set effectively sealed the match for the Croatian, the wound self inflicted on Barron's part. At 4040, the Irish player produced an excellent first serve but somehow contrived to push the feeble return wide. Ancic encountered minimal difficulty (Barron did save two match points) in subsequently serving out for the set and the match.

Meanwhile, Greg Rusedski's terrible season hit a new low on the opening day of Britain's Davis Cup tie against Ecuador. The British number two, who crashed out in the first round at Wimbledon recently, squandered a 4-2 lead in the final set to go down 6-3 6-7 7-5 4-6 7-5 to world number 11 Nicolas Lapentti on Number One court at the All England Club.

Tim Henman levelled the match score at 1-1 with a convincing win over Luis Morejon, cruising to victory 6-2 6-1 6-4. Britain must win to stay in the top world group.