Taiwanese No. 1 Lu Yen-hsun crashed out of the first round of the Shanghai Masters yesterday, while controversial Australian Nick Kyrgios swept aside Andreas Haider-Maurer in straight sets to set up a second-round clash with Japan’s Kei Nishikori.
Qualifier Lu fell to a 6-3, 6-3 defeat to world No. 18 Dominic Thiem of Austria in 1 hour, 17 minutes.
Outspoken Australian Kyrgios, who fired 13 aces and saved all five break points in a 6-3, 6-2 win over his Austrian opponent, had no illusions about the task ahead.
Photo: AFP
“Kei’s one of the best players in the world right now,” Kyrgios said.
“He’s got unbelievable returns. He’s a great athlete. He’s playing well. So I know what I have to do,” Kyrgios said.
Slovakia’s Martin Klizan beat local favorite Zhang Ze 7-6 (10/8), 6-2 and next runs into top seed Novak Djokovic, who is gunning for his ninth ATP Tour title of the year.
Croatia’s Ivo Karlovic, who prevailed 6-4, 7-6 (8/6) over Frenchman Jeremy Chardy, also faces a formidable second-round opponent in 2009 runner-up Rafael Nadal of Spain, who lost to Serbia’s Djokovic in Sunday’s China Open final.
John Isner of the US burnished his big-serving reputation with 20 aces in a 6-1, 6-2 romp against Adrian Mannarino of France, while Roberto Bautista Agut also had it easy against fellow Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, who was beaten 6-2, 6-3.
Steve Johnson of the US cut short Italian Andreas Seppi’s campaign with a 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (7/2) win.
Additional reporting by staff writer
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