Shapo

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia — Canada’s Denis Shapovalov beat Serbia’s Viktor Troicki 6-2, 6-3 in a first-round match at the St. Petersburg Open on Wednesday.

The second-seeded Shapovalov, from Richmond Hill, Ont., never faced a break point as he made the transition to a hard court after a second-round exit at the French Open on clay in Paris.

Shapovalov, ranked 12th in the world, won 86 per cent of points when he got his first serve in against the 197th-ranked Troicki.

Shapovalov will face world No. 141 Ilya Ivashka of Belarus in the second round of the ATP Tour 500 event.

Sixth-seeded Milos Raonic of Thornhill, Ont., also has advanced to the second round and will clash with Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan.