The main
draw of the
Qatar Open draw appears to have favored
Andy Murray, who has
struggled in 2024 and will face a lower-ranked opponent. His opponent will be a
qualifier from the qualifying rounds: Alexandre Muller (No. 73).
The British player has participated in four tournaments so
far, experiencing four consecutive defeats. In his initial tournaments at the
Brisbane International, he faced the second seed Grigor Dimitrov, who is
undergoing a career resurgence. At the Australian Open, Murray failed to
advance past the first round, this time against the 30th seed Tomas Etcheverry.
His subsequent matches were against lower-ranked opponents
such as Benoit Paire, currently outside the top 100, and Tomas Machac, who has
never entered the top 60.
This time against Muller, Murray will have a new opportunity
to break his negative streak, facing a player they have met only once in the
quarterfinals of the 2023 Qatar Open, with the 3-times Grand Slam champion
emerging victorious.
If Murray repeats the victory, he would face the winner of
the match between the 18-year-old Czech prospect Jakub Mensik (No. 129) and the
5th seed
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina (No. 24). A potential advancement to the
quarterfinals would likely see him against the first seed
Andrey Rublev,
although, at the moment, it's a significant challenge to envision Murray in the
quarterfinals.
The Doha draw will also feature top contenders such as Karen
Khachanov (No. 17), Ugo Humbert (18th), and Aleksander Bublik (23rd).