Matthew Ebden lost in straight sets to Gael Monfils in the first round of the ATP Masters event in Indian Wells.
The 30-year-old Australian had his serve broken four times as the Frenchman closed out a routine 6-3 6-3 victory.
Monfils occasionally showcased his jaw-dropping retrieving abilities over the course of the 71 minute match.
But the 42nd-ranked Frenchman was able to conserve his energy for the most part against Ebden, whose inability to control his service games proved to be his undoing.
After dropping his serve once in the first set, the Australian was broken three more times in the second set as Monfils rolled to a comfortable win.
Ebden’s countryman Alex De Minaur, granted a wildcard into the tournament, will be play German Jan-Lennard Struff later on Friday.
The winner will progress to a second-round clash with Argentine sixth seed Juan Martin del Potro.
In other first-round matches, American wildcard Ernesto Escobedo used his big forehand to top countryman Frances Tiafoe 7-5 6-3.
Pierre-Hugues Herbert outlasted Gilles Simon 6-7 (8-10) 7-6 (7-5) 6-3 to win their all-French meeting, which lasted almost three hours.
Cypriot qualifier Marcos Baghdatis rallied from a service break down in the final set to edge Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka 7-5 3-6 7-5.
Portugal’s Joao Sousa scored a 4-6 6-4 7-6 (7-4) victory over Russian veteran Mikhail Youzhny.
Hungary’s Marton Fucsovics accounted for Serbia’s Viktor Troicki 7-6 (7-1) 6-1 and Indian qualifier Yuki Bhambri defeated French qualifier Nicolas Mahut 7-5 6-3.