ALJAZ BEDENE made a strong start to his 2017 campaign by beating Guillermo Garcia-Lopez in straight sets to reach the second round of the Chennai Open.

The 27-year-old British No.4 needed only an hour and 15 minutes to defeat the unseeded Spaniard 6-3 6-3, thus setting up a last-16 showdown with Martin Klizan of Slovakia.

Bedene, who reached the third round of the French Open last year, fired seven aces against former world number 23 Garcia-Lopez at the SDAT Tennis Stadium in southern India.