Roger Federer looks to ease his way into the quarter-finals when he takes on Spain's Marcel Granollers on Wednesday night.
Federer got his 2011 Dubai campaign off to a comfortable start, cruising past India's Somdev Devvarman 6-3, 6-3 on Tuesday. The Swiss is a huge star in the Middle East and he was watched by a packed centre court crowd.
Devvarman had little to trouble Federer and to be honest India's top player was a little overawed in his first match against a top ten player. The Federer serve clicked into gear right from the start, giving Devvarman few chances to settle.
“I've had some tough ones over the years here actually in the early round," Federer commented afterwards. "That's why I don't judge my first rounds too harshly or whatever. It's about coming through and giving yourself a second chance the next day and then kind of move on in the draw. All in all, I think the result is fair. I was able to play aggressive and serve well when I had to, and it was a decent match.”
Granollers scored an impressive 6-1, 6-3 win over the big hitting but inconsistent Dmitry Tursunov. The Russian produced some strong performances in Marseille last week and few expected Granollers to win, never mind by such a convincing scoreline.
The Spaniard has had little to write home about before this tournament, losing four of his five matches in 2011. Expect another straightforward Federer win.
