Top seed and local favourite Ivan Ljubicic dropped the first set before recovering to beat British teenager Andy Murray 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 in the first round of the Zagreb indoor tournament on Wednesday.
Murray broke the Croat in the ninth game and held serve to clinch the first set before Ljubicic, who had complained of fatigue and back pains after reaching the Australian Open quarter-finals last week, found his rhythm.
"I hope my game will get better as the tournament goes on," he told reporters.
Britain's Tim Henman eased past Clement Arnaud 6-3, 6-3 and will meet third seed Richard Gasquet in the next round.
Another local player, the towering, big-serving Ivo Karlovic, dismissed German Rainer Schuettler in straight sets to set the stage for a second-round showdown against compatriot Mario Ancic.
Earlier, eighth seed Feliciano Lopez of Spain beat Sweden's Robin Soderling 7-6, 4-6, 6-1 while Russia's Mikhail Youzhny overcame Czech Tomas Zib 6-4, 3-6, 6-1.
In the first of Wednesday's second round matches Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka, who stunned second seed David Ferrer in his first match, lost 6-4, 6-4 to Austria's Stefan Koubek.
