Shapovalov overcomes service struggles, 1st-set loss to win opening match in Dubai
CBC
Canada's Denis Shapovalov advanced to the second round of the Dubai Tennis Championships with a 4-6, 6-4, 7-5 win over Hungary's Marton Fucsovics on Tuesday.
Shapovalov had eight aces in the match and broke Fucsovics four times on seven chances.
However, the No. 6 seed from Richmond Hill, Ont., struggled with his serve at times. He committed six double-faults and posted a 64 per cent accuracy on his first serves.
Shapovalov evened his career record against Fucsovics at 1-1. It was the first meeting between the two players since Fucsovics eliminated Shapovalov in the first round of the 2020 Australian Open.
WATCH | Shapovalov eliminated in Australian Open quarter-finals:
Shapovalov will next face Japan's Taro Daniel, who moved on with a 6-3, 7-6 (5) win over Belgium's David Goffin. Shapovalov won the only other meeting between the two in the 2019 Australian Open.
Second-seeded Andrey Rublev beat Daniel Evans 6-4, 7-5 in the first round on Tuesday, just two days after winning his ninth tour title.
The Russian, who defeated Montreal's Felix Auger-Aliassime in the final at the Open 13 tournament in Marseille on Sunday, next faces Soonwoo Kwan after the South Korean beat Ilya Ivashka 6-3, 6-2.
The seventh-ranked Rublev also won the doubles title in Marseille with Ukrainian partner Denys Molchanov.
"I arrived at the hotel maybe at 2 a.m. today," Rublev said in his on-court interview Tuesday. "I slept maybe six or seven hours. I was thinking that probably no chance for me to win, and here I am, I won my first round so I'm really happy. I cannot imagine a better start."
Karen Khachanov will face top-seeded Novak Djokovic in the second round after the Russian beat Alex de Minaur 6-3, 6-7 (1), 7-5.
On Monday, Djokovic won his first match of the year when he beat Lorenzo Musetti 6-3, 6-3. The top-ranked Serb couldn't defend his Australian Open title last month because he was deported from the country for being unvaccinated.
In other action Tuesday:
Fourth-seeded Jannik Sinner outlasted Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 4-6, 7-6 (6), 6-3 and will next face Andy Murray.
