Tuesday 4 October 2016 14:25, UK
Top seed Andy Murray started his title challenge at the China Open with a straight sets win over Andreas Seppi in the first round.
The British No 1 is favourite for the trophy following Novak Djokovic's withdrawal with an elbow injury, and he overcame a brief spell of resistance from Seppi in the second set to seal a 6-2 7-5 win in Beijing.
Murray made a dominant start to the match, twice breaking the Italian as he secured the first set in just over half an hour.
There was a spirited response from Seppi in the second, with the world No 94 forging ahead on a break, but Murray hit back instantly in the next game as he aggressively attacked his opponent's serve.
Murray was gifted victory when Seppi sent down a match-ending double fault and he will next face either Andrey Kuznetsov or Konstantin Kravchuk.
Second seed Rafael Nadal also made comfortable progress to the second round following a 6-1 6-1 win over Italian Paolo Lorenzi.
