Qatar Open 2025 Day 1: Men's predictions ft. Novak Djokovic / Fernando Verdasco vs Alexander Bublik / Karen Khachanov

Day 1 of the 2025 Qatar Open will commence on February 17, with eight matches taking place across singles and doubles. Some quality players will be in action, including Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz.

Djokovic will start his doubles campaign at the ATP 500 event, partnering Fernando Verdasco. The pair will face the Russian-Kazakh duo of Alexander Bublik and Karen Khachanov. Top seed Carlos Alcaraz will look to book his place in the second round in Doha as he faces Marin Cilic.

Seventh seed Grigor Dimitrov and eighth seed Jack Draper will also be in action, as they face Jiri Lehecka and Alexei Popyrin, respectively. On that note, let us take a look at the predictions for some of the matches that will take place on Day 1 of the Qatar Open.

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#1. Novak Djokovic / Fernando Verdasco vs Alexander Bublik / Karen Khachanov

The pair of Novak Djokovic and Fernando Verdasco will face Alexander Bublik and Karen Khachanov in the first round of the Qatar Open. Whoever wins, will take on either second seeds Henry Patten and Harri Heliovaara or Tallon Griekspoor and Adam Pavlasek.

Djokovic previously competed in the men's doubles event at the Brisbane International, partnering Nick Kyrgios, and the duo reached the quarterfinals before losing to top seeds Michael Venus and Nikola Mektic. Fernando Verdasco will play his final tournament and his first tour-level match since September 2023.

Alexander Bublik will play in his second double's tournament of the 2025 season, having previously suffered a first-round exit at the Australian Open with Alexander Shevchenko. Karen Khachanov's previous doubles competition was the Hong Kong Open, where he reached the final with Andrey Rublev before losing to Sander Arends and Luke Johnson.

While Djokovic and Verdasco are both quality players, Khachanov and Bublik have a lot more experience playing, and they should be able to come out on top and reach the next round at the Qatar Open.

Predicted Winner: Alexander Bublik and Karen Khachanov

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#2. Christopher O'Connell vs Hady Habib

Christopher O'Connell in action at the 2025 Australian Open (Image- Source: Getty)

Qualifier Christopher O'Connell will face wildcard Hady Habib in the first round of the Qatar Open. The two will lock horns for the very first time, with the winner facing either eighth seed Jack Draper or Alexei Popyrin.

O'Connell competed in the qualifiers of the Qatar Open as the second seed and started with a hard-fought 6-7(3), 7-6(4), 6-3 win over Yosuke Watanuki before triumphing 6-4, 6-2 over Pavel Kotov to book his place in the main-draw of the ATP 500 tournament. Habib, on the other hand, last competed at the Davis Cup Group 1 playoffs, where he lost 3-6, 6-2, 4-6 to Peru's Gonzalo Bueno.

Both players have won just one main-draw match so far in the 2025 season, with O'Connell having played four matches while Habib competed in three. The Aussie's higher-ranking and more experience on the ATP Tour will make him the favorite to win and he should be able to get the better of the the Lebanese and book his place in the second round of the Qatar Open.

Predicted Winner: Christopher O'Connell

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#3. Fabian Marozsan vs Aziz Dougaz

Fabian Marozsan will be up against Tunisian wildcard Aziz Dougaz in the first round of the Qatar Open. The two will square off for the very first time, with the winner facing either Grigor Dimitrov or Jiri Lehecka in the second round of the ATP 500 Open.

Marozsan's last tournament was the ABN AMRO Open in Rotterdam, where he reached the second round after beating Jan-Lennard Struff 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(3).

The Hungarian then put up a tough fight against fourth seed Andrey Rublev in the second round before losing 6(2)-7, 6(7)-7(9). Dougaz last competed at a Challenger event in Bahrain's capital Manama, where he suffered a second-round defeat to another Hungarian in Marton Fucsovics.

Fabian Marozsan has won six out of ten matches so far in the 2025 season while Aziz Dougaz is yet to register a tour-level victory. The Hungarian's superor experience will give him an edge entering the match, and he should be able to triumph over the Tunisian without much trouble, thus reaching the second round of the Qatar Open.

Predicted Winner: Fabian Marozsan