Garmin-Cervelo’s Heinrich Haussler edged a closely-fought sprint to claim the Tour of Qatar’s second stage in Doha.

The peloton approached the finish of the 135.5km stage closely-bunched – but soon strung out once Leopard Trek’s world time-trial champion Fabian Cancellara hit the front to drive the pace for team-mate Daniele Bennati.

And after a lead-out from Stuart O’Grady, Bennati took up the sprint alongside, Australian Haussler, Denis Galimzyanov (Katusha) and Theo Bos (Rabobank).

But Tour de France stage winner Haussler held his nerve to register his first victory of the year, with Bennati second and Galimzyanov third, while Tom Boonen (Quick Step) continues to lead overall.