Dimitrov to take on crowd favourite Jaziri in opener
dubai — With Roger Federer, the oldest world number one in history and a seven-time Dubai champion, opting to take some rest before the Indian Wells Masters, Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov will be leading the field when the men’s event of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships begins on Monday.
The world number four Dimitrov does evoke comparisons with the Swiss maestro every time he plays those elegant shots and that onehanded backhand.
Dimitrov, whose biggest triumph came last year at the ATP World Tour Finals in London, lost the Rotterdam final to Federer in straight sets.
“Our top seed Grigor Dimitrov ended last season by winning the ATP Finals in London, and is determined to follow up that victory with further success during 2018,” Salah Tahlak, tournament director, said at the draw for the men’s event on Saturday.
“He will begin as the favourite for the title, but every player he meets will be just as determined to win here. It will be interesting to see how well he deals with his challengers.”
Now Dimitrov, of course, would be hoping to win his first title of the year here in Dubai. But the 26-yearold player faces a tricky first round against Tunisian wildcard Malek Jaziri, a former Dubai quarterfinalist and a huge crowd favourite.
If Dimitrov clears in the first hurdle, his next opponent could be Robin Haase who took Federer to three sets in the Rotterdam indoor event. The 30-year-old Haase also reached the semifinals in Dubai last year.
Dimitrov also has veteran German Philipp Kohlschreiber in his half of the draw.
Dubai, of course, will never forget Kohlschreiber after his gladiatorial battle with Andy Murray in last year’s quarterfinal that included a dramatic 38-point second set tiebreak which lasted 31 minutes.
Second seed Lucas Pouille, on the other hand, faces a qualifier in the first round. The Frenchman will take on the winner of the match between Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan and Russian Karen Khachanov in the round of 16.
“We have a very interesting combination of experience and rising stars competing this week, and it will be fascinating to see if one of the players who usually performs away from the spotlight can step up to win one of the most coveted trophies on the ATP World Tour,” said Colm McLoughlin, Executive Vice Chairman and CEO of Dubai Duty Free.
“We can look forward to many exciting matches in the days ahead.”
The most exciting opening round match will undoubtedly be the one between fifth seeded Frenchman Richard Gasquet and 2015 Dubai semifinalist Borna Coric of Croatia.
The other very interesting opening round battle will be between
he (Dimitrov ) will begin as the favourite, but every player he meets will be just as determined to win Salah Tahlak
wildcard Marcos Baghdatis and Serbian Viktor Troicki.
Third seed Roberto Bautista Agut of Spain will take on German Florian Mayer, while fourth seed Damir Dzumhur of Bosnia will begin his campaign against a qualifier.
Also keep an eye on seventh seed Filip Krajinovic. The gutsy Serb has career wins over several top players, including his legendary compatriot Novak Djokovic. Krajinovic plays his first match against Italian Thomas Fabbiano.
Meanwhile, Japanese eighth seed Yuichi Sugita will lead the Asian challenge in Dubai as the 29-yearold player begins his tournament against Ilya Ivashka of Belarus.
rituraj@khaleejtimes.com