Ivan Ivanov opened his campaign at the tournament in Vale do Lobo, Portugal, with a win. The event has a prize fund of €30,000. The 18-year-old from Varna, seeded No. 7, defeated local qualifier Vasco Leote Prata 6:3, 6:1 in 72 minutes.
Ivanov made a strong start and took a 5:1 lead after two breaks of serve. The Portuguese player got one of them back, but the Bulgarian tennis player closed out the set 6:3.
In the second set, Ivanov again took a 5:1 lead. At 30:15, the match was interrupted due to rain. After play resumed, the Bulgarian won the two points he needed and finished the match in straight sets.
In the next round, Ivan Ivanov will face another representative of the host nation, João Domingues.