After Van de Zandschulp had handed in the first set, things looked good for the Dutchman in the second company. He ran out to a 5-2 lead, but then things went wrong. The experienced Croat won five games in a row and used his second game point.
In the first round, Van de Zandschulp was still too strong for Italian qualifier Thomas Fabbiano in two sets. In Doha he hoped to show himself after his relatively early elimination from the ABN AMRO tournament last week. The global number fifty was surprised in the second round in Rotterdam, after a flashy start, by the Czech Jirí Lehecka.
In the last game of the day, Van de Zandschulp caused a surprise in the doubles. Together with his American partner Mackenzie McDonald, he was 6-2 3-6 10-7 too strong for the Croatian duo Mate Pavic/Nikola Mektic in the second round. The Croats together lead the world rankings and won Wimbledon last year.
Murray out
Andy Murray is also out. He took just one game in his second round match against Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut. In just over an hour it became 6-0 6-1 for the number 16 in the world. Bautista Agut lost last year in Doha in the final to Nikoloz Basilashvili from Georgia.
The first seeded Denis Shapovalov, who got stuck in the opening round in Rotterdam last week, now started well and booked a convincing victory over Alex Molcan from Slovakia: 6-4 6-0.
Greek track is surprised by Pouille in Marseille
Tallon Greek track has got stuck in the opening round of the ATP tournament in Marseille. The sixth-seeded Dutchman was surprised in three sets by the Frenchman Lucas Pouille, the global number 154 who was admitted with a wild card. It was 7-5 3-6 6-1 for the former top 10 player who was out of action with an elbow injury.
The 25-year-old Greek track made a restless impression on the center court of the indoor tournament in the south of France. In the first set he gave up a 5-3 lead in a sloppy way and in the third set he came across as uninterested at times. After 2 hours and 17 minutes, Pouille finished it off with an ace.
The Dutchman only won slightly more of half of the points on his first serve: 53 percent. Pouille (27) won more than three quarters of the points on his first serve: 76 percent.
Greek track, the number 60 in the world, had been given a Wednesday start by the organization because he had to go back and forth from Marseille to Paris on Tuesday to apply for a visa for the United States. He had to apply for that visa again because he lost his passport at the end of 2020.
Last week, Greek track lost in the second round at the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament. In Rotterdam, Hungarian Marton Fuscovics proved too strong in two sets.
Sabalenka and Krejcikova already eliminated in Dubai
At the heavily occupied WTA tournament in Dubai, the numbers 1 and 2 of the placement list were eliminated early. Both first-seeded Aryna Sabalenka and Barbora Krejcikova lost in the second round of the tennis tournament in the United Arab Emirates.
Sabalenka from Belarus had to acknowledge her superiority with 6-4 6-4 in the Czech Petra Kvitova, who won the tournament in 2013. The Czech Krejickova, last year’s finalist, did not make it against Dajana Jastremska from Ukraine. It became 6-3 7-6 (3).
Title holder Garbiñe Muguruza was also eliminated in the second round. The number 4 of the placement list lost in three sets to the Russian Veronika Koedermetova: 6-3 4-6 4-6. On Tuesday, the third seed Paula Badosa was defeated in the opening round.