Tomic downs Verdasco in Shanghai

Bernard Tomic has had success in the first round of the Shanghai Masters, while Roger Federer was busy showing his cooking skills off the court.

Bernard Tomic has advanced to the second round of the Shanghai Masters with a win over Spain's Fernando Verdasco.

The Australian overcame Verdasco in straight sets for a 6-3 7-6 (7-3) victory on Sunday.

In earlier first-round play, Croatian teenager Borna Coric took two hours to win the first match of the tournament, beating Alexandr Dolgopolov of the Ukraine 6-3 1-6 7-6 (7-5).

Meanwhile, in action off the courts, Roger Federer revealed an until-now hidden passion for the kitchen, as the defending champion designed a tasty pizza to be served at the event.

The Swiss defending champion was last year offered the chance to create a pizza recipe, with the resulting product put on the plate in the players lounge by chefs at the Qi Zhong stadium.

The idea is on its way to becoming a tradition, with the previous year's winner now allowed to design a pizza to be served at the subsequent edition.

For his choice, 34-year-old Federer judiciously chose some of his favourite ingredients in what tasters have said is a winning pie combination.

"Last year they said in the quarters that if I won the tournament I could get my pizza as well, part of the pizza competition, and that's exciting," said the second seed, who starts in the second round against either Sam Querrey or a qualifier.

"Because all of the classic pizzas were taken, I came up with one that I like - figs, arugula salad, prosciutto, and creme fraiche, and extra mozzarella if you like. So you should try it out."

He also proudly proclaimed: "It's the Figalicious. I don't know if you know, but the name is really important."

Top-seeded Federer and two-time winners Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray lead the 56-player draw, with Tokyo champion Stan Wawrinka on fourth seeding.


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Source: AAP


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