Sultanov K. defeated Alkaya M. 7-6, 6-3 at the Astana men's singles event. The home player edged a tight opener in a tie-break, then used an early break in the second set to take control.
Alkaya struck first in the opener, breaking at 1-3, but Sultanov answered immediately at 2-3 and went on to win the tie-break. In the second set, Sultanov broke for 2-0 in game two and closed out the match at 6-3.
The standout number was Sultanov's returning: he won 23 return points to Alkaya's 14 and converted two break points. Alkaya finished with four aces to Sultanov's one, but it was not enough to prevent the straight-sets defeat.