Read & Watch: Former Champion Gasquet Up And Running In Antwerp

Making his first appearance since lifting the trophy in 2016, Richard Gasquet made a winning return to the European Open on Wednesday, defeating Czech Jiri Vesely 6-3, 4-6, 6-3.

The 2016 champion, now 5-0 at the Belgian tournament, landed 11 aces and won 72 per cent of service points to defeat Vesely for the second time in as many FedEx ATP Head2Head meetings. Gasquet is searching for his second tour-level trophy of the season after winning his 15th title at the Libema Open in June (d. Chardy).

Gasquet will face Jan-Lennard Struff for a place in the semi-finals. The German reached his fourth tour-level quarter-final of the season, after navigating a final-set tie-break, to beat Spaniard Feliciano Lopez 6-1, 3-6, 7-6(3). Both Struff and Lopez served 20 aces in the one-hour, 34-minute contest.

Canada’s Vasek Pospisil pulled off the upset of the day, beating countryman Milos Raonic 7-6(3), 7-5 behind 11 aces. Pospisil will next meet Jo-Wilfried Tsonga or Gael Monfils

Gilles Simon notched his 30th tour-level win of the season, beating Mackenzie McDonald 6-1, 6-1 in 63 minutes. The 33-year-old Frenchman, who has won titles in Pune and Metz this season, won 19 of 23 first-serve points and saved both break points he faced to set a quarter-final clash with second seed Diego Schwartzman or Cameron Norrie.

British qualifier Norrie advanced to the second round after a 6-3, 6-2 win over Marcel Granollers of Spain. Lucky loser Salvatore Caruso also reached the second round, beating Yuki Bhambri 7-6(6), 5-7, 6-1 in two hours and 19 minutes.

Did You Know?
French players have won both previous editions of the European Open. After Gasquet’s title run in 2016, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga defeated Diego Schwartzman to lift the 2017 trophy.