19-year old French tennis player Arthur Fils beat defending champion and fellow Frenchman Richard Gasquet in straight sets.
Fils, who is already ranked 35th in the world and has an ATP title, showcased his skills on the sold-out centre court, impressing with an 81 percent first service rate, winning the tie 6-3 6-4.
In other matches, two-time ASB Classic winner Roberto Bautista Agut lost in the first round to fellow Spaniard Roberto Carballes Baena, ending his 10-game winning streak at the event. Canada’s Denis Shapovalov, formerly in the world’s top 10, was surprisingly beaten by Austrian Sebastian Ofner in a one-sided match.
New Zealand Davis Cup rep Kiranpal Pannu lost to Australia’s world No 45 Max Purcell, despite a valiant effort. US-based Pannu ranked 500 places behind Purcell later blamed two service game errors which cost him the match.
The top seeds are set to play their first matches, with top seed Ben Shelton facing Hungary’s Fabian Marozsan, and last year’s runner-up Cameron Norrie playing against French qualifier Luca Van Assche. Other matches to look out for include third seed Francisco Cerundolo against qualifier Alexandre Muller and Felix Auger-Aliassime playing alongside German Daniel Altmaier.
Veteran kiwi Artem Sitak, in his final professional tournament before turning to coaching, was defeated in doubles alongside Rubin Statham by Romain Arneodo and Sam Weissborn.
