Kiki Bertens sees off Karolina Muchova in Qatar Open

DOHA: No.7 seed Kiki Bertens overcame Karolina Muchova to move into the last 16 of the Qatar Open, 6-2, 6-4 on Monday. Coming off the back of a successful defense of her title in St Petersburg, the WTA World No.6 showed too much consistency and variety for an opponent who has stormed up the Rankings since reaching the quarterfinals in Qatar 12 months ago.

Defending champion Elise Mertens strode confidently into the second round with a straight-sets win over Wang Qiang. The Belgian, seeded 16th in Doha, produced a dominant display to triumph 6-1 6-2.

Australian Open runner-up Garbine Muguruza endured a much tougher outing at the WTA Premier 5 event than Mertens, requiring three sets to see off Daria Kasatkina. The two-time grand slam champion prevailed 7-5 5-7 6-3 after two hours and 49 minutes, with Ajla Tomljanovic up next for the Spaniard.

Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia survived a late-night thriller that ended well past midnight, overcoming a spirited effort by Swiss qualifier Jil Teichmann and winning 7-5, 2-6, 7-5 to move into the second round. Barbora Strycova beat 10th seed Petra Matric 4-6 6-1 6-2, Zheng Saisai beat Marketa Vondrousova 1-6 6-3 6-2, Iga Saiatek beat Donna Vekic 6-4 7-5, 15th seed Maria Sakkari beat Julia Gorges 6-4 6-3 to reach next round. Agencies

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