British number one Kyle Edmund got his bid for Grand Prix Hassan II glory off to a winning start with victory over Ugo Humbert. The 24-year-old narrowly missed out on claiming his first ATP tournament triumph in Marrakech last year, losing to 33-year-old Spaniard Pablo Andujar in the final.
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The South African-born ace was back on the Moroccan clay on Monday and took care of 20-year-old Frenchman Humbert, the world number 63. Edmund is hoping for a decent run this week at the 250 Series event to break into the world’s top 20, with one eye on the French Open.
He secured a 6-3 6-2 success against Humbert and his reward will be a second-round clash with big-serving Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Tsonga was too good for 28-year-old German Cedrik-Marcel Stebe and will provide Britain’s Davis Cup star with a real test later this week.
Edmund won 77 per cent of his first serve points, and 83 per cent of his second serve points, needing just 79 minutes to get the job done. Frenchman Gilles Simon also advanced to round two by beating Slovakia’s Jozef Kovalik in straight sets.
