Qatar Open: In-form Alcaraz eases past Cilic to reach second round

Carlos Alcaraz, the top seed, won against Croat Marin Cilic 6-4, 6-4 to move into the second round of the Qatar Open at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex in Doha.

The Spaniard is now on a six-match winning streak, having last lost in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open to Novak Djokovic.

Since then, he has won his maiden indoor hard-court title in Rotterdam on his debut appearance at the tournament and has now seemingly brought that form in the middle-east swing.

Alcaraz was too strong for the 2014 US Open champion, breaking three times in total to comfortably ease in the second round in Doha.

It is also the Spaniard’s debut appearance at the Qatar Open, having played the South American golden swing in previous years.

Alcaraz, ranked No 3, will face the winner of the match between Chinese Zhizhen Zhang and Italian qualifier Luca Nardi next.

Doha ATP 500, other first-round results (Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex, hard, USD 3.035.960, most recent results first):

• Stefanos Tsitsipas vs. Hamad Medjedovic
• Quentin Halys vs. Felix Auger-Aliassime
• Novak Djokovic vs. Matteo Berrettini
• Andrey Rublev vs. Alexander Bublik
• Karen Khachanov vs. Daniil Medvedev
• Zizou Bergs vs. Roberto Bautista Agut
• Jan-Lennard Struff vs. Tallon Griekspoor
• Roman Safiullin vs. Alex De Minaur
• Botic van de Zandschulp vs. Abdullah Shelbayh
• Otto Virtanen vs. Nuno Borges
• Zhizhen Zhang vs. Luca Nardi
• Alexei Popyrin vs. Jack Draper
• Fabian Marozsan beat Aziz Dougaz (WC): 7-5, 6-3
• Jiri Lehecka beat Grigor Dimitrov (7): 6-4, 6-4
• Christopher O’Connell (Q) beat Hady Habib (WC): 7-6 (7), 7-6 (3)