Injured Melzer pulls out of Basel tennis tournament

US Open doubles champion Jurgen Melzer withdrew with back pains before his first round singles match at the ATP Swiss Indoors on Monday, with the Austrian replaced by Russian lucky loser Mikhail Kukushkin. Melzer, who lost in the quarter-finals of his home Austrian Open last week, was to have begun in Basel against American Donald Young. The 30-year-old is said to be in danger of missing the ATP World Tour Finals in London starting in three weeks after he and partner Philipp Petzschner qualified by virtue of winning their second Grand Slam doubles title after Wimbledon in 2010. Melzer will also not play next week in Paris Bercy at the Masters 1000 which wraps up the ATP regular season. Only three matches were scheduled for Monday at the event featuring number one Novak Djokovic and home hero Roger Federer both making their first starts since Davis Cup injuries six weeks ago. Andy Murray, third in the world after winning three straight Asian titles this month, is also entered on a wild card. Federer was beginning his campaign for a fifth title at home in six years when he faced Italy's Potito Starace in the first round in front of a sellout crowd at the St Jakobshalle.