Swiatek routs Collins in 53 minutes at Doha Open

World number one Iga Swiatek needed just 53 minutes to rout Danielle Collins and reach the Doha Open quarter-finals on Wednesday.

The reigning French and US Open champion, playing her first match since a shock last-16 exit at the Australian Open, defeated 42nd-ranked Collins of the United States 6-0, 6-1.

The Polish star will tackle last weekend's Abu Dhabi champion and world number nine Belinda Bencic for a semi-final spot.

"I felt pretty confident," said Swiatek who last season kicked off her 37-match win streak in Doha.

"I'm happy that I was kind of composed and from the beginning till the end pretty focused and disciplined with tactics. I didn't really let Danielle get into the rhythm. I wanted to be aggressive."

Bencic rallied to defeat Victoria Azarenka 1-6, 7-6 (7/4), 6-4 after being 6-1, 4-1 down at one stage.

World number six Coco Gauff opened her Doha campaign with a 6-3, 7-6 (8/6) win over two-time champion Petra Kvitova.

Kvitova, the champion in Doha in 2018 and 2021, racked up 21 winners but was undone by 31 unforced errors to Gauff's 14.

"I felt like I have watched her for a long time, and it was weird playing her in that respect, because it's like almost meeting a celebrity in a way," Gauff said of two-time Wimbledon champion Kvitova.

The 18-year-old Gauff will next face Veronika Kudermetova, who reached her fourth quarter-final of 2023 with a 6-2, 7-5 defeat of former Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin.

American second seed Jessica Pegula saved two match points to defeat former French Open winner Jelena Ostapenko 6-2, 2-6, 7-5.

World number four Pegula was down 5-2 in the third set and faced the match points at 5-4 down, but she recovered to take victory in eight minutes short of two hours.

Pegula will next face Beatriz Haddad Maia after the Brazilian defeated sixth-seeded Daria Kasatkina 6-3, 7-6 (9/7)