Marco Cecchinato upsets Gilles Simon in first round of Croatia Open

Gilles Simon of France has been upset in the first round of the Croatian Open. (Koji Sasahara/AP)

UMAG, Croatia — Unseeded Marco Cecchinato defeated fifth-seeded Gilles Simon of France 6-1, 3-6, 6-1 to open the Croatia Open with an upset result on Monday.

The 105th-ranked Italian broke his 36th-ranked opponent twice in the opening set, and did the same in the decisive third set after the favourite Simon won the second.

Cecchinato will next face local wild card Ivan Dodig, who beat unseeded Marius Copil of Romania 6-4, 7-6 (4) in the only other main-draw match.

It was the first win for Dodig on the ATP tour since June 2016.

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