Holger Rune (1st seed) and Grigor Dimitrov (2nd seed) qualified for the last 16 of the ATP 250 tournament in Brisbane, but Ben Shelton (3rd seed) was eliminated in the first round.

Rune of HolgerPhoto: Stefano Guidi / Zuma Press / Profimedia

Holger Rune and Grigor Dimitrov in the 1/8 finals of the ATP in Brisbane

The first match of the day ended with the victory of Roman Safiullin (39 ATP) over the American Ben Shelton (17 ATP, 3rd seed). The Russian won after two hours and 38 minutes of play with a score of 6-3, (5)6-7, 6-3.

Australian top seed Holger Roon took one hour and 41 minutes to defeat Australia’s Max Purcell (45 ATP) 4-6, 6-4, 6-2.

In the next round, Rune will meet the Russian Oleksandr Shevchenko (48 ATP). This season, the Dane is coached by Boris Becker and Severin Luthi (Roger Federer’s former coach).

In the most interesting match on Monday, Grigor Dimitrov (14 ATP, favorite 2) defeated the British Andy Murray (42 ATP, former world leader and three-time Grand Slam winner) in three sets.

The Bulgarian won the affair after two hours and 26 minutes of play, 4-6, 7-5, 6-2, and in the next round he will play the winner between Australia’s Li Tu (225 ATP, arrived from qualification) and Germany’s Daniel Altmaier (56 ATP).

The tournament in Brisbane will be held from December 31 to January 7. It is part of the ATP 250 category, has a total prize money of US$739,945, the main singles started with 32 players, and the title champion is Kei Nishikori (in 2019).