Berdych advances to 2nd round at Dubai Tennis Championships

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) Tomas Berdych advanced to the second round of the Dubai Tennis Championships by beating Joao Sousa of Portugal 6-1, 6-4 on Tuesday.

''A first match, playing outside after a while, it's a good test,'' Berdych said. ''Don't make it more complicated than needed.''

The seventh-ranked Berdych is a two-time finalist in Dubai, in 2013 and '14. He's reached at least the semifinals four of the last five years.

Also, eighth-seeded Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany defeated wild-card entry Marsel Ilhan of Turkey 6-1, 7-5, and Borna Coric of Croatia beat Jiri Vesely of the Czech Republic 6-4, 6-4.