Federer reaches quarters

Qatar - Roger Federer beat Evgeny Korolev of Kazakhstan 6-2, 6-4 on Wednesday to reach the quarter-finals at the Qatar Open.

The top-ranked Swiss star broke serve three times in the first set and once in the second. Federer, who won the Qatar Open in 2005 and '06, will next play either Andreas Seppi of Italy or Ernests Gulbis of Latvia on Thursday.

"I know how he plays so I had the match under control," Federer said. "He plays a lot of balls on the forehand, so I was able to stay ahead in the match. There were long rallies in the second set, but I am pleased to have reached the quarterfinals."

It was Federer's 17th win in Doha, having lost only two matches in five appearances at the tournament.

Later on Wednesday, second-ranked Rafael Nadal takes on Potito Starace of Italy in the second round.