Troicki makes early exit

Third seed Viktor Troicki was the victim of a surprise defeat today when he was knocked out of the St Petersburg Open in the first round by Karol Beck.

The Serbian served 10 aces – two more than his Slovakian opponent – but Beck was far more consistent on his serve and the world number 81 prevailed 7-6 (4) 4-6 6-4 in just over two and a half hours.

The defeat means Troicki, world ranked 31, has been knocked out in the first round for two years in a row having fallen to eventual champion Andy Murray in 2008.

Bjorn Phau moved into the second round with a 6-3 6-2 victory over Stanislav Vovk.