DUBAN, United Arab Emirates – Daniil Medvedev opened his title defense at the Dubai tournament on Tuesday with a 6-3, 7-5 victory over Kazakhstan’s Alexander Shevchenko in his first match since losing the Australian Open final to Jannik Sinner.
The top seed at the ATP 500 event, Medvedev sat out the Doha and Rotterdam tournaments due to fatigue and right foot discomfort after falling to Sinner at Melbourne Park.
Down 5-3 in the second set, Medvedev won four straight games to secure the victory. His next opponent will be the winner of the match between Lorenzo Sonego and Sumit Nagal.
Also in the first round on Tuesday, Russian Karen Khachanov (4th seed) defeated Frenchman Luca Van Assche 6-2, 6-3.
In a duel of Frenchmen, Ugo Humbert (5th seed) overcame Gael Monfils by 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 and will be Andy Murray’s opponent in the next round.
In addition, the Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina (8th seed) defeated the Hungarian Fabian Marozsan by 6-3, 4-6, 6-1.