Georgian qualifier Margalita Chaknashvili fought back from a set down to beat sixth seed Yanina Wickmayer of Belgium in the first round at the Tier IV Internazionali Femminili di Palermo on Tuesday.

Chaknashvili lost the first set 4-6 and looked to be heading out as recent Birmingham finalist Wickmayer took a 5-2 lead in the second.

But after Wickmayer failed to convert three match points at 5-3, Chaknashvili recovered to record a 4-6 7-6 (7/4) 6-4 victory in two hours and 29 minutes.

Third seed Aravane Rezai of France also fell in the first round as Rossana de los Rios recorded a 6-4 6-1 triumph.

Italian qualifier Alberta Brianti failed to covert five match points at 6-4 6-5 against compatriot Corinna Dentoni as the wildcard fought back to advance after edging an epic three hour 33 minute contest 4-6 7-6 (7/3) 7-5.

Seventh seed Mariya Koryttseva of the Ukraine beat Renata Voracova of the Czech Republic in three sets, while Lourdes Domnguez Lino, Olivia Sanchez, Galina Voskoboeva, qualifier Han Xinyun and lucky loser Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova also advanced.