Russian duo Khachanov and Rublev move on in Dubai

Karen Khachanov and Alexander Rublev played some great tennis in Dubai today and advanced to the next round of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

Almost two and half hours were required from Khachanov to battle past Alexei Poyprin who not only put forward a great effort but also at times looked the better player. Both of these players were well adapted to the conditions considering their familiarity with Dubai so it was no surprise it was a close match. Khachanov served great at the start and a too risky approach by Popyrin cost him the opening set.

In 2nd set, he played a much more balanced style which yielded efforts. The change was noticeable on Khachanov's serve as well where Popyrin and more chances and ultimately used one to clinch the set. The final one ended in a tiebreak despite Popyrin having several great chances to break Khachanov. Errors in key points were too many for the Australian to overcome so Khachanvo moves on.

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Joining him in the next round will be Andrey Rublev who returned to winning ways at his preferred event, an ATP 500 tournament. A bit of shaky start by Ruusuvuori gave Rublev an early break which he maintained throughout the set. Both played and served well looking to end points quickly which suited Rublev who won the opening set 6-4.

In the 2nd set, it followed a similar pattern with both dominating at the start with Ruusuvuori faltering off midway through the set. Rublev took the lead 5-3 and even had match points at that score but the Finn held on temporarily. In the end, Rublev served it out for a solid 6-4 6-4 victory.

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Agony and ecstasy... Contrasting emotions as @karenkhachanov defeats Popyrin 6-4 3-6 7-6 at #DDFTennis

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