The 2022 Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships is underway, with a stacked field competing at the WTA 500 event.
Day 1's first round was headlined by two-time champion Simona Halep's match against American qualifier Alison Riske in the first evening match on Centre Court. Also in action were world No 9 Iga Swiatek, French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova, and American teenage sensation Cori Gauff.
Kvitova powers past Giorgi
Petra Kvitova shrugged off her frustrating start to the season to demolish Italy's Camila Giorgi 6-2-, 6-0 in the first round of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Monday.
Kvitova, a former world No 2, arrived in Dubai having won just two matches from four tournaments this year but was too strong for world No 29 Giorgi and cruised into the second round in just 68 minutes.
The 31-year-old Czech will face either top seeded Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka or Ukrainian qualifier Marta Kostyuk in the second round.
Halep eases into second round
Two-time champion Simona Halep eased into the second round with a 6-2, 6-4 victory over American wildcard Alison Riske.
Halep, who was unable to defend her Dubai title last season due to injury, was near faultless in defeating Riske in 71 minutes, and will next face Spanish third seed Paula Badosa or fellow Romanian Elena Gabriela Ruse, who came through qualifying.
The former world No 1, currently ranked 23rd, dominated Riske in the first set, winning four games in a row to move into a 5-1 lead, before closing out the opener with a love service hold.
The second set looked to be heading the same way when Halep broke the world No 53 in the first game and held for a 2-0 lead. The two-time Grand Slam winner then had eight break points for 3-0 but Riske held firm. That appeared to invigorate the American who had two break point chances in the next game but Halep's excellent serve ensured she maintained her advantage.
The rest of the set stayed on serve and Halep closed out the victory on her second match point.
Gauff exits in first round
American teenager Cori Gauff was eliminated from the first round of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Monday after going down to compatriot Jessica Pegula 6-4, 6-4 on Centre Court.
In a match that saw both players struggle to hold serve, 17-year-old Gauff made Pegula work for the victory in a final game that contained four match points and two break points.
Pegula, the world No 14, quickly raced into a 3-0 lead in the first set but soon joined Gauff in having trouble holding serve as the teenager levelled at 3-3. Pegula immediately broke again to regain control and claimed the opener after both players held serve.
The struggles on serve continued into the second set, the first four games going with the returner, until Pegula edged in front again with a break and hold to lead 5-3. After a Gauff hold, the Australian Open quarter-finalist saw three chances to wrap up the match come and go and had to fend off two break points before ultimately taking the win in exactly 90 minutes.
Pegula will face either Tunisian eighth seed Ons Jabeur or Russian wildcard Vera Zvonareva for a place in the quarter-finals. While Gauff's singles campaign ends at the first hurdle, she will link up with Pegula to compete in the doubles.
Krejcikova battles past Garcia
Second seed Barbora Krejcikova advanced to the second round of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Monday with a 6-4, 7-6 victory over France's Caroline Garcia.
Krejcikova, who reached last year's final where she lost to Garbine Muguruza, had the chance to secure the win a little earlier having served for the match while leading 5-4 in the second set, only to be broken to love. After exchanges of serve, the set went to a tiebreak, which the French Open champion dominated 7-0 to wrap up victory in one hour and 38 minutes.
The first set comprised just one service break, which Krejcikova claimed in the fifth game.
The Czech world No 3 will face either Romania's Irina-Camelia Begu or a qualifier in the second round.
Swiatek cruises into second round
Iga Swiatek is the first player through to the second round after the Polish sixth seed made light work of 2018 finalist Daria Kasatkina.
Swiatek, the 2020 French Open champion, defeated her Russian opponent 6-1, 6-2 in just 65 minutes and will face either American Sofia Kenin or Latvia's Jelena Ostapenko in the second round.
The 20-year-old world No 9 dominated Kasatkina's service games in the first set, breaking at every opportunity and ensuring her own dropped serve in game three did not prove costly.
Swiatek immediately took charge of the second set, too, with another break of serve in the opening game and she extended her lead to 5-2 with a second break, before wrapping up a comfortable victory with a love hold.
Order of play
Centre Court - from 2pm
Barbora Krejcikova [2] bt Caroline Garcia [Q] 6-4, 7-6
Jessica Pegula bt Cori Gauff 6-4, 6-4
Not before 7pm
Simona Halep bt Alison Riske 6-2, 6-4
Petra Kvitova bt Camila Giorgi 6-2, 6-0
Court One - from 2pm
Iga Swiatek [6] bt Daria Kasatkina 6-1, 6-2
