Carlos Alcaraz advanced to the quarterfinals of the Qatar Open with a straight-set win over Valentin Royer.
The world number one, in his first tournament since winning a career Grand Slam at the Australian Open, won the first set 6-2 but had to withstand a second-set fightback from his French opponent before taking a 7-5 lead.
With the win, Alcaraz extended its outdoor hard court winning streak to 27 games.
“I had to be prepared for everything,” Alcaraz said. Sky Sports Tennis.
“There was a small part of my mind thinking about the third set, but the rest of me was trying to find a solution.
“I’m really happy and happy to have found a good rhythm and tennis again.”
Alcaraz advanced to the quarterfinals of the 55th ATP Tour and will face Russian Karen Khachanov, who beat Hungary’s Marton Pusovics 6-2 4-6 6-4 in the second round.
“It’s a huge number,” the 22-year-old added. “My mindset and goal is not to think about the number of advancements to the quarterfinals, but to think about the number of finals.”
Prisoner enters Qatari area
Second seed Jannik Sinner defeated Australia’s Alexei Popyrin in straight sets to advance to the quarterfinals.
The Italian made light work of his opponent, winning 6-3, 7-5 in one hour and 25 minutes to force a quarter-final draw against Jakub Mencic of the Czech Republic.
Watch the ATP and WTA Tour live on Sky Sports or stream with the NOW and Sky Sports apps, giving Sky Sports customers access to over 50% more live sport at no additional cost this year. Find out more here.
