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Montreal’s Gabriel Diallo made the most of a last-minute spot in the Madrid Open, beating Belgium’s Zizou Bergs 6-1, 6-2 in the opening round.
Diallo entered the main draw as a replacement for Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka, who withdrew before the tournament.
Diallo didn’t face a break point and won 86 per cent of his first-serve points. He converted all four of his break chances and won 19 points on return.
It was a strong response after falling to Croatia’s Borna Coric 6-3, 7-6 (6) in the final round of qualifying on Wednesday.
Diallo will next face fellow lucky loser Kamil Majchrzak, who replaced two-time champion Carlos Alcaraz after the second-seeded Spaniard withdrew Thursday with a muscle injury.
Later Thursday, 25th-seeded Leylah Fernandez of Laval, Que., was scheduled to face Ann Li of the United States.