Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships Day 2: Karatsev title defence ends in first round

Day 2 of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships features 11 first-round matches as the rest of the field aims to join world No 1 Novak Djokovic and former champion Andy Murray in the second round.

Aslan Karatsev's title defence ended in the opening round of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Tuesday as the Russian was beaten in straight sets by Mackenzie McDonald in the first match on Centre Court.

Karatsev defeated McDonald last month in the second round of the Australian Open - where the Russian made his historic breakthrough in 2021 before going on to win the title in Dubai - and the American took his revenge by claiming a 7-5, 6-3 victory.

There was little to separate the two players in the first set, until Mackenzie earned the all-important break for a 6-5 lead and the world No 61 served out the opener with ease. Mackenzie built on his finish to the first set by racing into a 4-0 lead in the second, and while Karatsev was able to earn back one of the breaks to make it 4-3, the Russian was broken again while serving to stay in the match.

Mackenzie will face Serbia's Filip Krajinovic - a winner on Monday over Tunisian qualifier Malek Jaziri - in the second round on Wednesday.

"I'm pleased with how I battled today," McDonald said. "Got a little shaky toward the end of the second set but happy I got away with it in that last service game and closed it out with a break.

"[Aslan] is a super tough player, especially in these fast courts. Australia was fast too and he really took it to me and same thing here. I just had to be patient and see where I could press. I was lucky I got some errors from him today and I took advantage."

Last year's finalist Lloyd Harris was eliminated in the first round after going down