Goffin, Herbert are Qatar ExxonMobil Open doubles champions

DOHA, January 05, 2019-David Goffin of Belgium and Pierre-Hugues Herbert of France on Friday beat Dutch pair Robin Haase and Matwe Middlekoop to become the Qatar ExxonMobil Open doubles champions.Goffin and Herbert won the final 5-7, 6-4, 10-4 in 1 hour 23 minutes at at the Centre Court at Khalifa Tennis and Squash Complex.Friday's victory was worth $74,270 for Goffin and Herbert. Frenchman Herbert now has 14 doubles titles to his name.Seventh seed Roberto Bautista Agut on Friday fought from a set down to upset world number one Novak Djokovic to reach the final of the Qatar ExxonMobil Open. Bautista Agut won 3-6, 7-6, 6-4 in 2 hours and 36 minutes.It was Bautista Agut's only second win in nine career meetings against the 2016 and 2017 Qatar ExxonMobil Open champion. Ranked 24 in the world, Bautista Agut is now 4-1 in Doha having reached the final in the Qatari capital for the first time. The Spaniard beat Djokovic at the 2016 ATP Masters in Shanghai. The 30-year-old said on Friday: “I will remember this match all my life. It was an unbelievable atmosphere. I work very hard to play tennis like this. I cannot be more happy."Bautista Agut, winner of 8 career titles, added: “I wanted to be there in the final. I wanted to fight until the last ball. Novak was up and playing very solid. We both played tough. I want to thank the fans who supported us. I hope they get to see another match like this and then they also enjoy good tennis."In the final match, Roberto Bautista Agut will take on Tomas Berdych who defeated Marco Cecchinato in the other semifinals match 7-6 6-3.

Qatar defeat Bosnia and Herzegovina in handball friendly

Doha, January 4, 2019- Qatar's Handball team defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina 33-16 in a friendly match in Doha yesterday. Qatar is preparing for the World Championship which will be held in Denmark and Germany from January 10. Yesterday's match was the fourth one in the series of friendless which Qatar have played ahead of the World Championship.Qatar is in Group D of the World Championship along with Angola, Egypt, Hungary, Sweden and Argentina.World champions France are in Group A, which also includes Russia, Germany, Serbia, Brazil and South Korea. Group B comprises Spain, Croatia, Macedonia, Iceland, Bahrain and Japan while co-hosts Denmark spearhead Group C that also has Norway, Austria, Tunisia, Chile and Saudi Arabia.Qatar will start their campaign against Angola on January 11 and will play against Egypt two days later. Al Anabi's next two matches are scheduled on January 14 and 16 against Hungary and Sweden respectively. Qatar will play their last preliminary round match against Argentina on January 17.

Novak Djokovic qualifies to Semifinals of Qatar ExxonMobil Open

Doha, January 04, 2018 - Serbian Novak Djokovic was made to work hard once more at the Qatar Exxonmobil Open at Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex on Thursday as the World No. 1 fought back from a set down for the second day running. Twenty-four hours after a comeback win over Marton Fucsovics, the 2016 and 2017 champion knocked out fifth-seeded Georgian Nikoloz Basilashvili 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.Djokovic, who clinched year-end No. 1 in the ATP Rankings for the fifth time last season, will next challenge seventh-seeded Spaniard Roberto-Bautista Agut for a place in Saturday's final. Djokovic leads Bautista Agut 7-1 in the FedEx ATP Head2Head series.Djokovic seeks to capture his third Qatar Open title, following his victories in 2016 and 2017.The Serbian had a great season in 2018 and won Wimbledon and US Open titles, as well as a number of other titles.

Stage set for Local Shooting Championship

DOHA, January 3, 2018 – The competitions of local Shooting Championship for national teams in classes rifle, piston, archery and Olympic shotgun will get underway at Losail Arena on Thursday.The championship comes in the frame of national teams preparations for upcoming international championships for the sport season 2019.In pre-event press release on Wednesday, Mr. Ibraheem Al Mohannadi, Championship Director and member of shooting national teams has confirmed that local championships are mainly aim at boosting shooters confidence to represent the country at both Asian and international levels.

Superstar Djokovic, fighter Wawrinka reach quarter-finals in style

Doha, January 03, 2019-World number one Novak Djokovic on Wednesday stopped Hungarian giant Marton Fucsovics in three sets to reach the quarterfinals of the Qatar ExxonMobil Open. Djokovic, a two-time champion in Doha, produced a fighting 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 win in exactly two hours on the Centre Court. It was Djokovic's second win over Fucsovics.Djokovic, the top seed in Doha, said Fucsovics fought well in the second round clash on Wednesday. "That's how he plays. He was a better player for most of the two sets. He was playing smart. He was great on the backline. He was changing the pace of the ball and moving me around. All the credit to him for a great match and I really wish him all the best in Australia," Djokovic said. It was Djokovic's second win over Fucsovics in as many matches on the Tour. Also on Wednesday unseeded Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland beat Nicolas Jarry of Chile in straight sets to reach the quarterfinals. Wawrinka won 6-4, 7-6 in the day's opening clash on Centre. Wawrinka, a three-time Grand Slam champion, played a controlled game from the baseline to seal his win 88 minutes against 23-year-old Jarry. It was Wawrinka's second successive win in Doha after the Swiss beat third seed Karen Khachanov of Russia in the first round. Georgia's Nikoloz Basilashvili, 26,stunned Andrey Rublev of Russia 6-3, 6-4 in the third match on Centre Court. Basilashvili fired 8 aces as he wrapped up the match in just 61 minutes of aggressive tennis. It was the first meeting between the two young players. Rublev, 21, was the losing finalist in Doha last year.

HH the Amir Attends Part of Qatar ExxonMobil Open Competitions

Doha, January 03, 2019 - HH the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani attended yesterday part of the competitions of the Qatar ExxonMobil Open tennis tournament, which is being organized by Qatar Tennis Federation at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex.HH the Amir watched the match that took place between world number one Novak Djokovic and Hungary's Marton Fucsovics, and ended with a 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 victory for Serbia's Djokovic to qualify for the quarter-finals of the tournament.The competition was also attended by a number of Their Excellencies Sheikhs, ministers and honored guests of the tournament. (QNA)