Walton edges tiebreak, sweeps second set past Mejia in Cincinnati

Adam Walton needed a tiebreak to separate himself from Nicolas Mejia in the Cincinnati opening round, then ran away with a 7-6, 6-0 win. The Australian's serve carried him through the tight first set: he landed 65.5% of first deliveries, won 72.2% of those points and an unusually high 73.7% behind the second ball, with four aces and just one double fault. Mejia matched him with four aces but managed only 54.8% on first serve and 53.8% on second, offering little resistance once the bagel set began. Walton advanced with a straight-sets statement at Masters 1000 level.