Andy Murray of Great Britain in action against Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany during their men's singles quarter final match of Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championship in Dubai, United Arab Emirates on March 2, 2017. [Photo/VCG]

Murray cruises

Top seed Andy Murray had no such trouble and said he was getting closer to his best as he hammered Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 6-2, 6-0 to surge into the quarters.

With the quick win, the world No 1 lined up a Thursday match with Philipp Kohlschreiber after the German beat Russian Daniil Medvedev 6-4, 6-4.

"It was very tough at the start, we both had chances in those early games," said Murray, who has never won the Dubai showpiece.

"I played very well. I served better today than in the previous round. I'm certainly playing better than I did at the start of the year. Everything worked well tonight.

"I moved well and I was focused throughout. I didn't give away any cheap points."

Murray and second-round victim Garcia-Lopez had not faced off since 2012, with the Spaniard winning their last meeting at Indian Wells.

But there was never a hint of a repeat. After the first four games took half an hour, the pace picked up, with Murray winning the first set.

He tightened his grip, losing just one point on his serve in the second set on his way to a dominant victory.

Agence France-Presse