Novak Djokovic has not lost any motivation for tennis, but believes he needs time to find some rhythm after a long break, as he conceded the world number one spot.

Djokovic's 86-week reign at the top of the ATP rankings will end on Monday, after the Serbian lost to qualifier Jiri Vesely 6-4 7-6 (7-4) in the Dubai Tennis Championships.

That means that Daniil Medvedev will leapfrog Djokovic regardless of whether or not he wins in Acapulco.

Using his official Twitter account, Djokovic congratulated both Vesely – who won his only previous meeting with the 20-time grand slam champion back in 2016 – and Medvedev.

"Well played @jiri_vesely, that was a great game. Wish you the best of luck for the rest of the tournament," Djokovic wrote, accompanying his post with a thumbs up emoji.

"Congratulations also to a very deserving @DaniilMedwed, who will now become world number one."

His appearance in Dubai was Djokovic's first competitive action of 2022, after he was unable to feature at the Australian Open due to his refusal to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

While suggesting he is still working his way back to full sharpness after not playing since December, Djokovic insisted he is fully motivated to carry on playing.

"My goal is to keep on playing tennis," Djokovic said in his post-match news conference.

"That's the ultimate goal. For as long as I really feel like it and as long as I can play. As long as my body allows me, as long as the circumstances in my life as well, the people that surround me [and] support me.

"I'm still motivated and I'm still p***** off when I lose a match. I care about it. I care about winning every match, as anybody else on the Tour, regardless of the age. I'm actually glad that I'm feeling a lot of emotions every single day because it means that I really want to be part of this sport, part of the Tour.

"Unfortunately, [it] wasn't my day. I congratulate Jiri. He played better. 

"The more matches I play, the more comfortable I get on the court. I need the match play. I didn't have many matches at all last few months.

"I don't look at the age really as a restricting factor for my career. I still feel great in terms of my body and the way it's holding on, the way it's recovering. It's been serving me well, so to say. That's something that obviously encourages me to keep going."

Anett Kontaveit remained on course for a sixth title in seven months, progressing to the Qatar Open semi-finals after defeating Ons Jabeur in straight sets.

Champion in St Petersburg two weeks ago, Kontaveit extended her winning run to eight matches following a 6-4 6-1 success.

The opening set was neck and neck until Kontaveit won 15 out of 16 points from 30-30 at 4-4 to draw first blood and establish a 2-0 lead in the second.

The Estonian, who registered just 12 unforced errors throughout the contest, then took 12 of the last 15 points to advance to the last four. 

"At times, it was just kind of fun because I felt like the level was really good, and I was playing really well," said Kontaveit, who has won nine of her last 13 matches against top-10 opposition.

"I think I have this confidence that I can go deep every week that I'm playing, and I'm not setting these mental barriers to myself that I used to do. 

"I'm very happy with being in the semi-finals, but I also feel like I can still go deeper, I can still do more. So, I'm not too satisfied yet with this result. I feel like if I play well or if I'm consistent, I have a chance with anyone.

"I'm really happy that I'm bringing a good level of tennis consistently every tournament. I think that's something that I'm just most pleased with."

In the semi-finals, Kontaveit will face another in-form player in Jelena Ostapenko, who saw off Garbine Muguruza in straight sets.

Having triumphed in Dubai last week, the 15th seed has now recorded nine successive victories for the first time in her career after prevailing 6-2 6-2.

Ostapenko struck 39 winners and claimed 15 of 18 points on her opponent's second serve as she moved a step closer to a maiden title in Doha, having reached the final six years ago.

Meanwhile, Iga Swiatek is through to her first WTA 1000 semi-final on a hard court after a 6-2 6-3 win over Aryna Sabalenka.

The former French Open champion won seven out of eight breakpoints, while reeling off six successive games in the second set to secure a comfortable victory.

Next up for her is Maria Sakkari, who recorded her third win against Coco Gauff in four meetings after prevailing 6-3 6-3.

The sixth seed is through to her sixth semi-final at WTA 1000 level or above – and targeting her first such title.

Daniil Medvedev will become the new world number one after Novak Djokovic was beaten by Jiri Vesely at the Dubai Tennis Championships.

Medvedev entered this week knowing victory at the Mexican Open would see him move to the top of the ATP rankings for the first time.

But the Russian was still waiting to play his quarter-final on Thursday when his ascension was confirmed courtesy of Djokovic's last-eight defeat in Dubai.

Djokovic, a seven-time year-end number one, had led the rankings for 86 consecutive weeks, boosting his record total to 361 weeks.

In his first tournament since missing the Australian Open, however, the five-time Dubai champion struggled to match 123rd-ranked Vesely and went down 6-4 7-6 (7-4).

Djokovic might have known what to expect, having lost his only prior meeting with Vesely in Monte Carlo in 2016.

The Serbian looked like getting to grips with his opponent at the start of the second set, applying pressure, but was then broken again and had to respond strongly to reach a tie-break.

Again, Vesely led, and Djokovic's match was summed up by a double-fault immediately after winning back the mini-break, allowing the Czech to prevail.

The victor hailed the end of Djokovic's reign, saying in his on-court interview: "It's great for tennis to have somebody new as world number one again.

"We all know Novak missed the Australian Open, but he's been such a champion, as world number one for 361 weeks.

"Tennis needs new number ones, new generations coming up, so I think it's just great."

As Vesely advances, second seed Andrey Rublev will fancy his chances of a second straight ATP Tour title after his win at the Open 13 Provence.

Rublev stretched his winning streak to seven matches in coming from behind to beat Mackenzie McDonald and make the semi-finals, where he will play Hubert Hurkacz, who defeated Jannik Sinner.

Rafael Nadal hopes Alexander Zverev's withdrawal from the Mexico Open will "serve as a lesson" for him and other players when it comes to controlling their emotions on the court.

The world number three was pulled out of this month's tournament in Acapulco following an outburst where he hit the umpire's chair with his racquet in a tirade following a doubles defeat.

The ATP subsequently barred him from competition for a second-round singles clash, with several leading players, including Novak Djokovic, condemning the German's actions.

Speaking ahead of his own quarter-final this week, Nadal - who won a record-breaking 21st Grand Slam in at the Australian Open last month - stated he hoped the 24-year-old and other young players would learn that such behaviour is not acceptable.

"It's unfortunate, without a doubt," the Spaniard said. "I feel sorry for him as I have a good relationship with Alexander.

"In the end, he deserves the sanction because you can't act in this way.

"I think Sascha is aware of that and I hope this will serve as a lesson for him and for other young players who sometimes lose control on the court.

"I am not going to enter into what is or is not fair in terms of sanction," Nadal said. "But in the end you have to stop that type of attitude from becoming fashionable."

Zverev had been due to face Peter Gojowczyk in a singles encounter before he exploded at the end of his match with partner Marcelo Melo against Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara.

Following an over-ruled decision from the umpire that handed the latter pair match point in a super tie-break, the duo decided the game with an ace the very next serve.

That led to Zverev smashing his racquet against the umpire's chair on multiple occasions in quick succession, punctured by a foul-mouthed tirade.

The Tokyo 2020 champion subsequently apologised for his behaviour. The Mexico Open continues until February 26.

Marie Bouzkova is through to the quarter-finals at the Abierto Zapopan in Guadalajara after beating Lucia Bronzetti in straight sets.

The Czech, ranked 96th in the world, will play either number three seed Sara Sorribes Tormo or Magdalena Frech in the last eight after sealing a 7-6 (7-2) 6-2 win against Bronzetti.

Anna Kalinskaya is also through after following up her impressive first-round win against eighth seed Qinwen Zheng by beating another Chinese opponent, Xinyu Wang 6-4 0-6 6-4.

The Russian had a mixed outing and looked to be on the ropes after losing the second set, but recovered and will go up against either fourth seed Camila Osorio or Hailey Baptiste in the quarter-finals.

One last eight match that has been finalised will be between Qiang Wang and Anna Karolina Schmiedlova after they beat Harmony Tan and Anastasia Potapova respectively.

Wang overcame her French opponent – who had eliminated second seed Madison Keys – 6-4 6-2, while Schmiedlova also won in straight sets against Potapova, 6-3 7-6 (7-5).

Rafael Nadal sealed his 12th consecutive win of the new season after a straight sets victory over Stefan Kozlov at the Mexican Open.

Nadal's 12-0 record to begin the year is the best of his illustrious career, and he never looked in any trouble as he eased to a 6-0 6-3 win against the American to advance to the quarter-finals in Acapulco.

The Australian Open champion's next opponent will be Tommy Paul after he beat Dusan Lajovic 7-6 (8-6) 2-6 7-5.

"A little bit of a strange match," Nadal said following his win. "Kozlov has a different style than most other players, so you need to be very careful. Sometimes you are able to win points in a row, but then if you start to play at his rhythm, it's very difficult because he has great control from the baseline and he's very smart."

Number one seed Daniil Medvedev is also safely through after comfortably defeating Pablo Andujar 6-1 6-2, and he will now go up against Yoshihito Nishioka after his victory against Feliciano Lopez.

Stefanos Tsitsipas managed to finish his match against J.J. Wolf in less than 48 minutes as he romped to a 6-0 6-1 win, while his quarter-final opponent Marcos Giron had a much tougher time of it getting past eighth seed Pablo Carreno Busta 6-7 (7-9) 6-4 7-6 (7-4).

Cameron Norrie also came from a set down to beat John Isner 6-7 (2-7) 6-3 6-4, and the sixth seed will now face Peter Gojowczyk after the German received a walkover following his compatriot Alexander Zverev being "withdrawn" from the singles competition after attacking the umpire's chair at the end of his defeat in the doubles.

Meanwhile, in the Chile Open, second seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas beat fellow Spaniard Carlos Taberner 6-2 7-6 (7-4) and will face eighth seed Facundo Bagnis in the quarter-finals after the Argentinian secured a win against Hugo Dellien 6-2 6-2.

Thiago Monteiro fought hard to get past third seed Federico Delbonis with a 3-6 6-4 6-1 victory, and will go up against seventh seed Sebastian Baez in the last eight, who defeated Juan Ignacio Londero 6-3 6-3.

Novak Djokovic condemned the actions of Alexander Zverev, but expressed his support for the world number three after he was "withdrawn" from the Mexico Open for hitting the umpire's chair with his racquet.

Zverev was enraged during a doubles clash with partner Marcelo Melo against Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara, after the umpire over-ruled a decision from the line judge.

That subsequently handed Glasspool and Heliovaara match point in the super tie-break, which was decided by an ace on the next serve.

Zverev quickly walked off and smashed his racquet against the umpire's chair three times, before shouting at the umpire that he had "destroyed the whole f****** match" and striking the chair again.

The German was then withdrawn by the ATP due to "unsportsmanlike conduct" ahead of a second-round singles meeting with Peter Gojowczyk.

The Olympic champion has apologised for his actions, explaining his regret at letting his fans, the tournament, and the sport that he loves down, and Djokovic believes Zverev will learn from his mistake.

"I saw the video, I saw Sascha's [Zverev] statement," Djokovic told reporters at a news conference after cruising into the quarter-finals of the Dubai Tennis Championships.

"I think he said it all in that statement. He realises that it was a mistake. I understand the frustration. Sometimes on the court, you feel in the heat of the battle lots of different emotions, different things happening in your head.

"I've made mistakes in the past where I've had tantrums on the court, so I understand what the player is going through. Of course, I do not justify his actions, but that statement has handled it in the right way. 

"He said he made a mistake and his actions were not appropriate. I think that the disqualification decision was not too harsh, I think it was correct under the circumstances. 

"Of course, it can be harsh for a player to get disqualified from a tournament. I know a year-and-a-half ago, I had something - I can't say similar - but I was disqualified from a grand slam after unintentionally hitting the line umpire.

"I realised that it was a mistake and I had to take it. Hopefully, he can reflect on that and not let something like that happen again in his life. I'm sure that he's going to approach it maturely."

Djokovic enjoyed a much calmer outing in Dubai, where he overcame Karen Khachanov in just 98 minutes 6-3 7-6 (7-2) to tee up a quarter-final tie against qualifier Jiri Vesely.

He was then keen to stress that Zverev is not the first player to produce a raging response when on the court, and insisted that the 24-year-old will recover from the outburst.

"I'm sure that the ATP management and officials will look at the video, will probably interview the chair umpire, will take some time to decide what they want to do," he added.

"I'm never going to encourage the ATP disqualifying or fining a player because I'm not in a position to do that, why would I do that? 

"Everyone is a human being, everyone is flawed and can make mistakes, but I wouldn't say that he was the only one that ever has done something like that. 

"There were many examples of players hitting their racquet in the umpire's chair. It happens. Bottles, bags were thrown, a lot of things, a lot of bad words. It's not the only case."

Two of the top three seeds crashed out of the WTA Qatar Open in the round of 16 as Barbora Krejcikova and Paula Badosa both lost, though top seed Aryna Sabalenka is through to the quarter-finals, along with Coco Gauff.

Sabalenka eased past Jil Teichmann 6-2 6-1 in Doha, winning an impressive 70 per cent of her second serves as she rarely gave her Swiss opponent any hope in a match that lasted just over an hour.

The Belarusian will now play Iga Swiatek in the last eight after the seventh seed beat Daria Kasatkina 6-3 6-0.

Number two seed Krejcikova was eliminated by the winner in Dubai last week, Jelena Ostapenko, 6-3 6-2. The Czech struggled to get going and ended the match with seven double faults to her name.

World number four Badosa fared no better as she also lost in straight sets to Gauff 6-2 6-3, with the 17-year-old winning a dominant 77.1 per cent of points on her first serve.

Badosa is the joint-highest ranked player that Gauff has defeated, along with Naomi Osaka, who was also ranked fourth in the world when she lost to the teenager at the 2020 Australian Open.

Gauff will now face Maria Sakkari after the Greek defeated another American, Jessica Pegula.

Ostapenko will go up against reigning WTA Finals champion Garbine Muguruza who convincingly defeated Madison Brengle 6-0 6-2.

Number four seed and St Petersburg champion Anett Kontaveit is through after a topsy-turvy clash with Elise Mertens 6-3 0-6 6-2 and will come up against Tunisia's Ons Jabeur.

Novak Djokovic is delighted to be back in competitive action after he booked his spot in the quarter-finals of the Dubai Tennis Championships.

Djokovic, whose decision not to be vaccinated against COVID-19 caused him to be deported from Australia on the eve of the year's first grand slam, eased to a 6-3 6-3 win over Lorenzo Musetti in his first match and made similarly light work of Karen Khachanov on Wednesday.

The world number one has won in Dubai on five occasions, last doing so in 2020, having elected against defending his title last year.

However, the Serbian is looking good to regain the crown in what is his first tournament on the ATP Tour in 2022, after he was unable to feature in Melbourne. 

Djokovic needed 98 minutes to see off Khachanov 6-3 7-6 (7-2) and tee up a quarter-final tie against qualifier Jiri Vesely.

"I missed it [playing competitively]. This is my life," Djokovic said, with his previous competitive appearances coming in the Davis Cup Finals in November and December.

"This is what I have known for the past 20 years. Tennis is my love. I enjoy bringing positive energy and memories for people who watch."

It was not all plain sailing for Djokovic, who offered up four break points, but the 34-year-old clawed back three of them.

"I was feeling excited and motivated," added Djokovic, who has progressed to the quarters in Dubai every time he has featured at the tournament.

"But also at the same time I was feeling stressed. Particularly at the moments when I was facing break points. I thought the atmosphere in the stadium was terrific."

Djokovic, who will lose his place at the top of the ATP rankings if Daniil Medvedev triumphs in Acapulco, should have little trouble in sealing a semi-final spot, though Vesely does come into that tie on the back of a surprise 6-2 6-4 win over world number 15 Roberto Bautista Agut, who had triumphed in Doha last week.

Murray falls short of landmark win

Second seed Andrey Rublev came from a set down to defeat Kwon Soon-woo 4-6 6-0 6-3, and will go up against American Mackenzie McDonald for a place in the last four.

There was no such joy for former world number one Andy Murray, however, who fell to Jannik Sinner 7-5 6-2.

"It is a special feeling [to share the court with Murray]," said Sinner, who will next face Hubert Hurkacz, a 6-3 6-2 winner over Alex Molcan.

"He is a legend. Winning three grand slams, many, many tournaments and he has had some unfortunate moments with surgeries. His fighting spirit is incredible.

Murray was chasing a 700th tour-level win of his career but failed to muster a single break opportunity against the Italian, who made it to the quarter-finals in Melbourne last month.

Alexander Zverev has apologised for his outburst at the Mexico Open that saw him "withdrawn" from the singles competition for attacking an umpire's chair. 

Zverev and Brazil's Marcelo Melo were in a super tie-break against Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara when they were angered by a call made by the umpire, who overruled a decision from the line judge.

Glasspool and Heliovaara subsequently profited by delivering an ace on match point, which was followed by Zverev quickly walking off and smashing his racquet against the umpire's chair three times.

The world number three then shouted at the umpire that he had "destroyed the whole f****** match" before striking the chair again.

Zverev was due to be in second-round singles action against Peter Gojowczyk, but the ATP Tour confirmed the Olympic champion had been removed from the draw due to "unsportsmanlike conduct".

Former world number one Andy Murray condemned the 24-year-old's "reckless" outburst after his loss to Jannik Sinner, and Zverev has now apologised unreservedly for his raging response.

"It is difficult to put into words how much I regret my behaviour during and after the doubles match yesterday," Zverev wrote on Instagram on Wednesday. 

"I have privately apologised to the chair umpire because my outburst towards him was wrong and unacceptable, and I am only disappointed in myself. 

"It just should not have happened and there is no excuse. I would also like to apologise to my fans, the tournament, and the sport that I love.

"As you know, I leave everything on the court. Yesterday, I left too much. I am going to take the coming days to reflect – on my actions and how I can ensure that it will not happen again. I am sorry for letting you down."

Alexander Zverev has been "withdrawn" from the singles competition at the Mexican Open in Acapulco after attacking the umpire's chair at the end of his defeat in the doubles.

Zverev and Brazil's Marcelo Melo were in a super tie-break against Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara when they were angered by a call made by the umpire.

A return on Melo's serve seemed to be called out by a line judge, but the umpire overruled the decision to put Glasspool and Heliovaara 9-6 up and give them match point, a subsequent ace ending the match in their favour.

As the pairs shook hands at the net afterwards, Zverev quickly walked off and smashed his racquet against the umpire's chair three times.

He then shouted at the umpire that he had "destroyed the whole f****** match" before striking the chair once more.

Zverev was due to face Peter Gojowczyk in the second round of the singles, but the ATP Tour confirmed the Olympic champion has been removed from the draw.

A brief statement read: "Due to unsportsmanlike conduct at the conclusion of his doubles match on Tuesday night, Alexander Zverev has been withdrawn from the tournament in Acapulco."

Rafael Nadal equalled the best start to a season in his career after winning his first match at the Mexican Open on Tuesday.

In his first match since a record 21st grand slam title in Australia, Nadal was a comfortable 6-3 6-2 winner over Denis Kudla, dropping only four points on serve.

Nadal is now 11-0 for the season, equalling the start he made in 2014, when his winning run was ended by Stan Wawrinka in the Australian Open final.

"I think I started playing well, a good victory in straight sets. That's always very positive for the confidence," said Nadal. "I think I played a very solid match for the first day.

"Of course, there are a couple of things that I can do better, but in general terms, I played well, so I can't complain at all."

Daniil Medvedev, who had also not played since the final in Melbourne, came through a tougher contest against Benoit Paire 6-3 6-4 in his opening match in Acapulco.

Medvedev held a two-set lead and looked in control before Nadal came roaring back to claim the Australian Open title, but the Russian could claim a landmark achievement in his first tournament since that heartbreak.

Medvedev, who faces Pablo Andujar next, will become world number one if he wins in Mexico, regardless of Novak Djokovic's performances in Dubai.

"It's always not easy to come back after some rest and some time off competition," he said. "I felt like my sensations were not at the top today, but I managed to fight until the end against a very tough opponent, and I'm happy that I managed to win."

Stefanos Tsitsipas racked up the 200th win of his career, holding off Laslo Djere to win two tie-breaks. He will now face J.J. Wolf, who surprised Lorenzo Sonego by fighting back from a set down to win 3-6 7-6 (9-7) 6-2.

Cameron Norrie was a straight-sets winner over Daniel Altmaier, while Yoshihito Nishioka battled through against veteran Feliciano Lopez.

Tommy Paul progressed after Matteo Berrettini retired when the American was poised to tie the match at one set all. John Millman also had to call an early halt to his match with Marcos Giron after a freak accident on court in which the Australian accidentally hit a ball into his eye.

At the Chile Open, home favourite Alejandro Tabilo beat Renzo Olivo in straight sets, while fifth seed Federico Coria was earlier knocked out by Yannick Hanfmann.

Miomir Kecmanovic defeated Marco Cecchinato, while there were also wins for seeds Sebastian Baez and Facundo Bagnis.

Emma Raducanu was forced to retire in her first WTA Tour match since the Australian Open.

The US Open champion exited to Danka Kovinic in round two in Melbourne, as her bid for another major title was hampered by a painful blister to her right hand.

A month on, Raducanu took on Daria Saville at the Abierto Zapopan in Guadalajara but was forced to call a halt to proceedings after three hours and 36 minutes, with the scores at 5-7 7-6 (7-4) 4-3. It was the longest WTA match of 2022.

The 19-year-old had fallen at the first hurdle at last year's Linz Open, the only previous event where she appeared as the top seed, and she might have feared a repeat amid a slow start on Tuesday.

Raducanu and Saville traded early breaks, before the Australian seemed to settle first, claiming a 3-1 lead.

Back roared Raducanu and a tense opener continued in back-and-forth fashion, although the big opportunities fell the Briton's way.

She let slip three break points at 5-4 but had four more at 6-5, eventually able to celebrate with a mixture of relief and delight when Saville netted.

Raducanu served for the match at 5-3 in the second, but Saville battled on not only to force the tie-break but also a deciding set.

The Australian fell 2-0 down in the third but was ahead 3-2 when Raducanu took a medical time-out and returned to court with heavy strapping on her leg. After struggling through another two games, Raducanu retired a break down at 4-3, meaning Saville will progress to face Caroline Dolehide.

Meanwhile, after the shock exit of Madison Keys the previous day, Raducanu's fellow seeds had no such issues this time around.

Sara Sorribes Tormo and Camila Osorio each advanced in straight sets, beating Katie Volynets and Viktoriya Tomova respectively.

Jannik Sinner saved three match points to avoid a shock defeat to Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the first round of the Dubai Tennis Championships.

After losing the first set, the world number 10 staved off defeat in a nerve-wracking second-set tie-break.

The fourth seed clung on as Davidovich Fokina saw a trio of opportunities to clinch a shock win go begging, the Spaniard made to pay as his Italian counterpart fought back to prevail 4-6 7-6 (8-6) 6-3.

Sinner, who will next face former world number one Andy Murray, said: "It was a very tough match. I know him, but we've never played against each other.

"It was the first time for both of us and it was a tricky one, saving three match points. On the first one I got lucky because it was out, but not so far [out]."

Second favourite Andrey Rublev won both the singles and doubles titles in Marseille last week and continued his fine form with a 6-4 7-5 win over Daniel Evans that saw the Russian send down 28 winners.

Sixth seed Denis Shapovalov had to recover from a set down to see off Marton Fucsovics, though fifth seed Hubert Hurkacz enjoyed a more routine straight-sets triumph over Alexander Bublik.

Eighth seed Roberto Bautista Agut made relatively light work of Arthur Rinderknech but defending champion and seventh seed Aslan Karatsev was stunned 7-5 6-3 by Mackenzie McDonald.

Karen Khachanov needed a little shy of three hours to beat Alex de Minaur, his dubious reward a second-round clash with Novak Djokovic as the world number one continues his return to the Tour following his controversial Australian Open absence.

Defending champion Petra Kvitova and former world number one Victoria Azarenka were both forced to withdraw from the WTA Qatar Ladies Open through injury on a day where the top seeds all cruised through in Doha.

Kvitova – who won the 2018 and 2021 editions of the tournament, beating Garbine Muguruza in the final on both occasions – was left unable to continue during her clash with Elise Mertens, later tweeting that an injury to her left wrist had flared up during the second set.

Her conqueror Mertens will face fourth seed and WTA St Petersburg champion Anett Kontaveit in the round of 16 after the Estonian's win over Ana Konjuh on Monday.

Meanwhile, Azarenka joined Kvitova in announcing her withdrawal through injury, suffering pain in her left hip ahead of her scheduled clash with American Madison Brengle.

The tournament's top seeds had more luck on a day of few surprises. World number two Aryna Sabalenka breezed to a 6-2 6-2 victory over France's Alize Cornet, with the Belarusian the favourite for the first WTA 1000 event of the year as world number one Ashleigh Barty is missing through injury.

Elsewhere, world number three Barbora Krejcikova made light work of Poland's Magda Linette, winning 6-1 6-3, and will face former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko in the round of 16, having eliminated the Latvian from last month's Australian Open.

Paula Badosa also recorded a straight-sets victory, seeing off Clara Tauson 6-1 6-2 to reach the last 16, where she will face 17-year-old American Cori Gauff, who defeated France's Caroline Garcia 6-2 7-6 (7-3).

There were also three-set wins for top-10 players Iga Swiatek and Ons Jabeur, with Swiatek beating Viktorija Golubic 6-2 3-6 6-2, and Jabeur overcoming Aliaksandra Sasnovich 1-6 7-5 6-3.

In the final match of the day, world number six Maria Sakkari downed American Ann Li 6-3 6-3.