Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov has beaten fifth-seeded Frenchman Gilles Simon to reach the Brisbane International second round.
Dimitrov claimed the win on Pat Rafter Arena 6-3, 7-6 (10) after a marathon tiebreak in which Simon saved match point five times before finally falling on his sixth.
It is the first win in five attempts for 2013 Brisbane finalist Dimitrov against Simon.
The unseeded world No.28, whose pop-star girlfriend Nicole Scherzinger watched from the stands, will next meet the winner of American Steve Johnson and Serbia’s Viktor Troicki.