Singapore's Yu Mengyu progressed to the round of 32 in Doha ©Getty Images

Singapore's Yu Mengyu edged out Monaco's Yang Xiaoxin in five games to reach the last 32 of the women's singles event at the World Table Tennis Star Contender tournament in Doha.

Yu, a former team world champion and five-time Commonwealth Games gold medallist, beat Yang 8-11, 11-4, 11-2, 10-12, 11-7 at the Lusail Multipurpose Hall to secure her place in the next round of the main draw.

The 31-year-old will meet Puerto Rico's Adrianna Diaz for a spot in the round of 16.

Commonwealth Games gold medallist Manika Batra of India was among the other players to progress on the opening day of main draw action in the Qatari capital.

Batra, who won the singles title at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, overcame Chinese Taipei’s Hsien-Tzu Cheng 11-5, 11-9, 11-9.

The world number 63 will take on world number three Mima Ito of Japan tomorrow.

India's Sathiyan Gnanasekaran was among the winenrs in the first round of the men's singles draw ©Getty Images
India's Sathiyan Gnanasekaran was among the winenrs in the first round of the men's singles draw ©Getty Images

In the men's singles draw, former African champion Omar Assar of Egypt was beaten 11-7, 11-7, 9-11, 8-11, 11-7 by Kazakhstan's Kirill Gerassimenko.

Recently crowned Indian national champion Sathiyan Gnanasekaran fought back from two games down to oust Frenchman Emmanuel Lebesson.

Gnanasekaran beat the former European champion 9-11, 7-11, 11-7, 11-4, 11-4 and will next face Japanese star and world number five Tomokazu Harimoto.

The top seeds in each draw are set to enter the competition when play continues tomorrow.