Mumbai, February 18: Top-seeded Carlos Alcaraz overcame Croatian veteran Marin Cilic 6-4, 6-4 to reach the round of 16 at the Qatar Open. The 36-year-old Cilic, the 2014 U.S. Open champion who has fallen to No. 192 in the rankings, was on Monday playing his first match of the season after recovering from a long-term knee injury. The Croatian led 4-3 and 0-40 on Alcaraz's serve in the second set, but the Spanish four-time major winner managed to recover and then broke in the next game. Alcaraz will play either Zhang Zhizhen of China or Italy's Luca Nardi next. Qatar Open 2025: Dominant Fernando Verdasco-Novak Djokovic Duo Brush Past Alexander Bublik-Karen Khachanov in 48 Minutes.

“I am just really happy that I stayed calm at that moment, breathing, going through my routines, making good points," Alcaraz said. “That's why I was able to win in two sets.”

Earlier, seventh-seeded Grigor Dimitrov lost 6-4, 6-4 to Jiri Lehecka. Also on Monday, eighth-seeded Jack Draper beat Alexei Popyrin 6-2, 7-6 (4) to set up a meeting with another Australian, Christopher O'Connell. Several other top players will play their first matches on Tuesday. Aryna Sabalenka ‘Fears’ Anti-Doping System, Says ‘You Just Start To Be More Careful’.

Second-seeded Alex de Minaur will face Roman Safiullin. Novak Djokovic, who had to pull out of his Australian Open semifinal with a hamstring injury, will take on Matteo Berrettini. Daniil Medvedev, Andrey Rublev and Stefano Tsitsipas will also play on Tuesday.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)