Murray has been paired with a qualifier in the upcoming tournament. On Sunday, he found out that his opponent will be French world No 73 Alexandre Muller. In their previous encounter, Murray defeated Muller in the quarterfinals of last season’s Qatar Open. If Murray manages to replicate that victory, he will advance to face either fifth seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina or promising Czech player Jakub Mensik in the round of 16.
The top seed in Murray’s quarter is Andrey Rublev, who will also be closely watched after his outburst during a quarterfinal loss in Rotterdam. Rublev, in a fit of frustration, accidentally injured himself with his racket. The defending champion, Daniil Medvedev, has chosen not to participate, leaving Rublev and Karen Khachanov as the top two seeds. Both Rublev and Khachanov will receive byes into the round of 16, as will French No 3 seed Ugo Humbert and No 4 seed Alexander Bublik.
Rublev’s first opponent will be either French wildcard Richard Gasquet or Kazakhstan’s No 2 player Alexander Shevchenko. Khachanov, on the other hand, will start his campaign against either Hungarian power hitter Fabian Marozsan or qualifier Vit Kopriva. If the seeding holds in Khachanov’s quarter, he will face German sixth seed Jan-Lennard Struff in the quarterfinals. Struff’s Round of 32 opponent is Christopher O’Connell, and the winner of that match will go on to face either Italian qualifier Giulio Zeppieri or Finn Emil Ruusuvuori.
In the No 3 seed Humbert’s section, his first match will be against either Pavel Kotov or Lorenzo Sonego. If the seeding holds, Humbert is expected to face Italian No 7 seed Lorenzo Musetti in the quarterfinals. Musetti will have a challenging opening match against the up-and-coming Chinese star Zhizen Zhang, who recently entered the top 50 rankings. Zhang or Musetti will then face either Gael Monfils or Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp.
In the No 4 seed Bublik’s section, it appears likely that he will face Rotterdam semi-finalist Tallon Griekspoor in the quarterfinals. Griekspoor, seeded No 8, will begin his tournament in the Round of 32 against French qualifier Hugo Grenier. If Griekspoor advances, he will then face either Abdullah Shelbayh or Alexei Popyrin in the last 16. Bublik, currently ranked No 23 in the ATP Rankings, will start his campaign in the Round of 16 against either Roberto Bautista Agut or Marton Fucsovics. With his recent success and high ranking, Bublik is considered a strong contender for the title in Qatar.
According to the Source tennis365.com