Anil John

What makes watching sport an exercise well worth the time you invest is getting to see someone upset all calculations predicated on form and pedigree, and walk away with the top prize.

Romanian top seed reaches her second Doha final despite trailing 1-4 in the third set; Belgian stuns third seed Kerber

Simona Halep and Angelique Kerber were thoroughly tested yesterday before they joined Elina Svitolina in the semi-finals on a day which saw the leading seeds restore order at the withdrawal-hit Qatar Total Open.

When Caroline Wozniacki woke up with a fever and a headache yesterday morning, she knew instantly that her quest for her a first-ever Qatar Total Open title had ended even before it had started.

Pliskova had a great Australian Open where she ousted Serena Williams in the last eight before falling to Naomi Osaka

‘I’m not the player who is really watching the draw. I know who is playing here. I know it is a tough draw’

It’s only poetic justice that Qatar defeated blockading nations Saudi Arabia and UAE before beating continental giants Japan in the final. It’s a conquest of telling proportions.

Qatar’s policy of not mixing politics with sport was adhered to by everybody associated with the team