By ,
Published January 13, 2015
Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, France (Sports Network) - Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany was among Sunday's first-round winners at the $3.465 Monte Carlo Masters, the third ATP Masters 1000 event of the season.
The 16th-seeded Kohlschreiber defeated Brazilian Thomaz Bellucci by a 6-4, 6-2 margin on the famed red clay at Monte Carlo Country Club.
Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov cruised past Bernard Tomic of Australia 6-2, 6-4 in one hour. Dolgopolov won 82 percent of his first service points.
Meanwhile, Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov beat Xavier Malisse 6-3, 6-2.
This prestigious tennis event, which dates all the way back to 1897, has been captured the last eight years by the record-setting Rafael Nadal, who topped Novak Djokovic in last year's marquee finale. Last year's final marked a rematch of the 2009 title match, which was also won by the clay-court king Nadal.
Nadal is 44-1 lifetime at this particular event and owns a record 22 Masters shields overall.
https://www.foxnews.com/sports/kohlschreiber-advances-at-monte-carlo