American Jenson Brooksby advances at the Shanghai Masters with two-set win over qualifier

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SHANGHAI (AP) — Jenson Brooksby followed up his semifinal run at the Japan Open earlier this week with a dominating 7-6 (2), 6-1 win Thursday over James Trotter in the first round of the Shanghai Masters.

Brooksby returned to play this year at the Australian Open after two years away from the game due to injuries and a suspension because of missed drug tests. Brooksby's loss at the Japan Open in Tokyo was to fellow American and second-seeded Taylor Fritz.

The top-seeded players in Shanghai all received first-round byes and players such as Jannik Sinner, who won the China Open final in Beijing on Wednesday, and Novak Djokovic will not play their opening matches in the second round until at least Friday.

Carlos Alcaraz, who beat Fritz in the Japan Open final, announced after his win in Tokyo that he won't play at Shanghai.

“I’ve been struggling with some physical issues and, after discussing with my team, we believe the best decision is to rest and recover,” the top-ranked Alcaraz wrote in an Instagram post.

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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis