Qatar Open: Gael Monfils beats Andrey Rublev to win title

Gael Monfils is ranked 46th in the world, having been as high as sixth back in November 2016

France's Gael Monfils won the Qatar Open title after beating Russia's Andrey Rublev in straight sets in Doha.

The 31-year-old defeated Rublev, 20, 6-2 6-3 in just over one hour to secure his seventh ATP World Tour title.

Monfils was given a walkover in the semi-finals because of Dominic Thiem's withdrawal through illness.

"I'm very happy," Monfils said. "I like this tournament so much. I always come back and I finally got it. So I'm just very happy and very proud."

His ranking has fallen to 46 in the world, having not played since the US Open in September because of a knee injury,