Defending champion Andrey Rublev beat Filip Krajnovic 7-5 6-2 to advance to the second round at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
Krajnovic earned an early break in the second game in the second game to build up a 5-2 lead in the fisrt set. Rublev fought back by winning five consecutive games to clinch the opening set 7-5.
Rublev broke twice in a row in the third and fifth games to seal the second set 6-2 after 89 minutes improving his record in Dubai to 11 wins to 2 defeats.
Rublev has drawn level to 3-3 in his six head-to-head matches against Krajnovic. The Russian player hit 28 winners and converted four and his six break points.
“Crazy things were in my head. Filip is one of my good friends and we always have tough battles. So today I was going on court thinking that it was going to be a really tough tough match and when he started the way he did. I did not know what to do because he was playing so good. Somehow I calmed myself and said ‘OK , restart at the bottom and raise my level’, and I started to play much better. I was able to turn the mathc around and finish the match in a good way”, said Rublev.
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina cruised past Malek Jaziri 6-2 6-0. Jaziri was playing the final match of his professional career.
Thanasi Kokkinakis fended off four set set points to beat Quentin Halys 6-4 7-6 (11-9). Kokkinakis will face either Borna Coric or Daniel Evans in the second round.
Lorenzo Sonego fired 10 aces in his 7.5 6-3 win over Marc Andrea Huesler 7-5 6-3. Both players held serve in the first three games. Sonego earned the first break in the fourth game to take a 3-1 lead, but Huesler broke straight back to draw level to 3-3. The next games went on serve until the 12th game when Sonego sealed the first set with a break of serve.
Sonego won three consecutive points in the eighth game to earn the break for 5-3 and held serve at 30 to close out the second set 6-3.
The Italian player will face either Felix Auger Aliassime or Maxime Cressy.
Tallon Griekspoor edged past Constant Lestienne 6-4 3-6 6-2. Griekspoor, who lost to Jannik Sinner in the semifinal in Rotterdam earlier this month, will face either Novak Djokovic or Tomas Machac in the second round.
