Struff Stuns Shapovalov at Monte Carlo
MONACO (Dispatches) - Jan-Lennard Struff spoiled Denis Shapovalov's 20th birthday by posting a 5-7, 6-3, 6-1 victory on Monday in the first round of the Monte Carlo Masters at Monaco.
The 28-year-old German bounced back from losing the opening set to easily win the final two while prevailing over the 15th-seeded Canadian in one hour, 58 minutes on the clay-court surface.
Struff posted four aces and won 71.7 percent of his first-serve points.
Shapovalov was plagued by 51 unforced errors against just 22 winners.
Struff next faces Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov.
Two other seeded players lost on Monday: No. 12 Nikoloz Basilashvili of Georgia and No. 17 Brit Kyle Edmund.
Hungary's Marton Fucsovics scored six aces to record a 7-5, 3-6, 6-1 win over Basilashvili in two hours, three minutes.
****Canada's Denis Shapovalov
The 28-year-old German bounced back from losing the opening set to easily win the final two while prevailing over the 15th-seeded Canadian in one hour, 58 minutes on the clay-court surface.
Struff posted four aces and won 71.7 percent of his first-serve points.
Shapovalov was plagued by 51 unforced errors against just 22 winners.
Struff next faces Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov.
Two other seeded players lost on Monday: No. 12 Nikoloz Basilashvili of Georgia and No. 17 Brit Kyle Edmund.
Hungary's Marton Fucsovics scored six aces to record a 7-5, 3-6, 6-1 win over Basilashvili in two hours, three minutes.
****Canada's Denis Shapovalov