Prižmić advances, Dodig eliminated at Croatia Open in Umag

The Croatia Open ATP 250 tournament is underway in Umag, the country's largest and longest-running professional men's tennis event.

Croatia's rising star Dino Prižmić opened his campaign on Monday with a commanding straight-sets victory over Czech player Vít Kopřiva, winning 6-1, 6-3.

"I am very pleased with the way I played, especially considering I haven't competed on clay for quite some time. I'm happy with my performance in the first match, and I hope the second one will be even better," Prižmić said after the match.

The 19-year-old will face Slovakia's Alex Molčan in the second round on Wednesday.

Croatia's other representative, Matej Dodig, was knocked out in the opening round on Tuesday after a 6-4, 6-2 defeat to Spain's Pablo Carreño Busta.

The 20-year-old from Osijek, ranked 254th in the world, was unable to match the experience of the former world No. 10, who is currently ranked 65th.

"I wasn't nervous going into the match, but I didn't feel at my best because the conditions were quite different from last week, when I reached the Challenger final in Trieste. I came in full of confidence, but he's a very tricky player. He gets everything back and kept targeting my backhand, so I didn't have many chances to attack, which isn't something I'm used to. It wasn't my best match, but it was another valuable experience," Dodig said after the match.