ATP Tour

Michelsen notches 60-minute opening triumph in Brussels

Alex Michelsen wasted little time getting his European indoor season up and running on Monday at the BNP Paribas Fortis European Open.

Competing as the fifth seed at the Brussels ATP 250 event, Michelsen raced past Italian qualifier Andrea Guerrieri 6-1, 6-2 to reach the second round. The No. 37 player in the PIF ATP Rankings converted four of six break points he earned, according to Infosys ATP Stats, to overwhelm a player making his ATP Tour debut.

“I lost early in Shanghai, so I got here about a week ago and have been putting the work in on the court since Tuesday or Wednesday last week," Michelsen said. "It’s a little bit of a different surface here with the wood, but I’m getting used to it and feeling good.”

Michelsen, who made his first Grand Slam quarter-final in September at the US Open, will take on home favourite David Goffin or lucky loser Remy Bertola in the next match of his Brussels debut. The 22-year-old is chasing his first ATP Tour title this week.

Jaume Munar and Martin Damm were the other opening-day winners in Brussels. Munar overcame #NextGenATP Italian Federico Cina 6-4, 6-3 to advance to face top seed Arthur Fils, while Damm sank Yannick Hanfmann 7-5, 6-3. The American left will take on third seed Francisco Cerundolo for a quarter-final berth.