Doha, 19 February (H.S.): World number one Carlos Alcaraz and second-ranked Jannik Sinner delivered commanding straight-sets victories on Thursday morning, to advance to the quarterfinals of the ATP 500 Qatar Open 2026 at the Khalifa International Tennis Complex.

Spain's 22-year-old sensation Carlos Alcaraz overcame a mid-second-set deficit to defeat France's Valentin Royer 6-2, 7-5, extending his winning streak to nine matches since the start of 2025. After dominating the opener with a break in the third game, Alcaraz trailed 2-5 in the second but rallied spectacularly, reeling off five consecutive games to seal the victory.

Fresh off becoming the youngest player to complete a career Grand Slam by winning the Australian Open earlier this month, he now faces seventh seed Karen Khachanov of Russia in the quarterfinals, holding a favorable head-to-head record against the 2024 champion.

Italy's Jannik Sinner, competing in his first tournament since the Australian Open semifinals, showcased impeccable serving to dispatch Australia's Alexei Popyrin 6-3, 7-5 without conceding a single break point. The world number two broke decisively in the sixth game of the first set and capitalized on Popyrin's 11th-game error in the second to close out the match in 85 minutes. His unbeaten run against players outside the top 50 now stands at an astonishing 50 matches; awaiting him in the last eight is Czech Republic's Jakub Mensik.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar