Jack Draper marked his ATP Tour return with a win in Dubai, while Felix Auger-Aliassime survived a tense battle to advance.
JACK Draper made a winning return to the ATP Tour after nearly six months away, defeating Quentin Halys 7-6 (10-8), 6-3 in the first round of the Dubai 500 event.
The Briton, who last played on tour when he withdrew before the US Open second round in August, said he was thrilled to be back competing.
“It feels so good to be out here competing in front of people,” said Draper, whose world ranking has slipped from a career-high fourth to 12th.
“It could have been a little cleaner from my side, but I hadn’t played on the Tour for a long time.”
Draper, whose only match since August was a Davis Cup win in February, added that he had missed the competitive feeling.
“I’ve been craving the feeling of competing for a very long time. It just felt normal. It felt like I was coming back to doing what I love.”
Top seed Felix Auger-Aliassime also advanced but needed six match points to finally see off China’s Zhang Zhizhen 6-3, 7-6 (7/4).
The Canadian, last year’s Dubai runner-up, admitted the tense finish was mentally challenging.
“I stopped counting at some point, it was getting too frustrating,” Auger-Aliassime said.
“Having match points is the position you want to be in as a player, but it’s weird how the mind plays a trick on you.”
Auger-Aliassime, a finalist in his last two tournaments this season, will next face Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.
The Frenchman earned his first tour win since January by beating Moez Echargui 7-6 (7/3), 6-7 (3/7), 7-6 (7/4), firing 29 aces including one on match point.
In other action, Stan Wawrinka continued his farewell tour with a 7-5, 6-3 victory over Benjamin Hassan.
The Swiss veteran recorded his 10th tour-level win since turning 40, an Open Era record, with former great Roger Federer watching from the stands.
