Cilic, Tomic Reach Istanbul QFs

Second seed Marin Cilic enjoyed a winning debut at the TEB BNP Paribas Istanbul Open on Wednesday as he dismissed Damir Dzumhur 6-3, 6-2 in 70 minutes.

The Croatian opened his clay-court swing with a quarter-final showing in Monte-Carlo two weeks ago (l. to Ramos-Vinolas) and is bidding to win his second title on the dirt this week, five years on from his Umag triumph.

Cilic goes on to face eighth seed Steve Darcis, who made short work of Jiri Vesely with a 6-2, 6-1 victory in 52 minutes.

Sixth seed Bernard Tomic booked his quarter-final spot with a 7-5, 6-3 victory over Rogerio Dutra Silva.

“It’s my second time being in a clay-court quarter-final,” said Tomic. “It’s a very good thing for me. This time last year I was ranked 17, 18 in the world and couldn’t win a clay-court match. It’s good progress for me. I’m happy that I’m playing well, especially in Istanbul.”