HOUSTON -- Juan Carlos Ferrero called it his worst match of 2003.

With easy shots sent astray and mediocre serving, it sure looked ugly -- and could derail his bid to overtake Andy Roddick for the year-end No. 1 ranking.

The second-ranked Ferrero lost to No. 8 David Nalbandian 6-3, 6-1 Monday in the Tennis Masters Cup's opening round-robin match, which was every bit as lopsided as the score indicates.

"It's one of those days. I didn't hit any winners, and I didn't serve very well. Nothing good," said Ferrero, who won the French Open and lost to Roddick in the U.S. Open final. "It's the first match of the year I play like this. You never know when it's going to come."

Nalbandian held a 17-6 edge in winners and converted all four of his break-point opportunities, while holding serve throughout. All that despite playing with his left wrist tightly wrapped by white tape because of a lingering injury.

"I don't feel 100 percent in the wrist, so I have to be careful every time I hit the ball," said Nalbandian, the 2002 Wimbledon runner-up. "But to start like this, by beating Juan Carlos, is an important step."

Ferrero, who came in with a 67-16 record and four titles, is trying to become the first Spaniard to finish a season atop the ATP Tour computer rankings, something he called "a goal for me. If I finish No. 1, it will be fantastic."

To do so, he'll have to fare better in Houston than Roddick, whose first match comes Tuesday against No. 7 Carlos Moya. Roddick supplanted Ferrero at No. 1 last week.

After the round-robin portion at the $3.65 million event, the top two players in each four-man group advance to the semifinals.

So Ferrero can take heart from this: In his previous two Tennis Masters Cup appearances, he reached the 2001 semifinals and the 2002 final -- both times after losing his first match.

He fell behind by a break at 4-2 in the first set, helping out with a double-fault and just watching as the Argentine turned a 122 mph serve into a forehand return winner that landed at the baseline.

Ferrero had a chance to get right back into it, earning a break point in the very next game.

But Nalbandian ended an 18-stroke point -- the longest of the match -- with a perfectly angled forehand passing shot. Ferrero bounced his racket high off the purple court at the Westside Tennis Club and yelled at himself. His errant returns on the next two points handed over the game.

How much was Ferrero off his game? In the second game of the second set, Nalbandian barely got his racket on a half-volley that floated over and gave Ferrero an easy shot with his opponent out of position. But Ferrero dumped a backhand into the net.

It was Nalbandian's first match since he pulled out of the final at Basel, Switzerland, at the end of October, citing tendinitis in his left wrist. He withdrew from the Paris Masters the next week.

"I didn't play for a long time, so I feel fresh, and my mind is focused," said Nalbandian, now 2-0 against Ferrero.

Nalbandian is the only player in the field who didn't win a title this season. He did reach two finals, though, and came within a point of upsetting Roddick in the U.S. Open semifinals.

Ferrero was asked before the Tennis Masters Cup whether he'd like to face Roddick in next Sunday's title match with the top ranking at stake.

"For the crowd, for the tournament, that would be perfect," Ferrero said, then smiled. "For me, if he loses early, that's OK."