Dubai - Arab Today
Holder Stan Wawrinka was sensationally dumped out of the Dubai Tennis Championships on Tuesday as his form collapsed following an early 4-1 lead.
The Swiss three-time Grand Slam winner was beaten 7-6 (7/4), 6-3 in the first round by outsider Damir Dzumhur. Wawrinka was playing for the first time since suffering a right knee injury at the Australian Open a month ago, where he reached his eighth major semi-final before falling to Roger Federer.
And following defeat by the 77th-ranked journeyman from Bosnia-Herzegovina, he admitted that his fitness was lacking after only a week of practice.
Dzumhur made the most of his Dubai debut to advance into a match with Marcel Granollers of Spain. The loss was the third from 10 matches this season for Wawrinka.
Source: QNA