ATP Qatar Open Round-Up | Jannik Sinner shows top form against Machac, Fils and Mensik struggle for victories

Jannik Sinner took a straightforward win in his return to the courts, defeating Czech Tomas Machac (No. 31) 6-1, 6-4. The Italian world No. 2 was playing his first match back since the semifinal loss at the Australian Open against Novak Djokovic.

It was a perfect day for Sinner, who did not concede a single break point. He dominated his rival throughout the match, maintaining a consistency that Machac could never break. Sinner served 6 aces and won 86% of points on his first serve and 85% on his second.

The Italian reaches 21 wins in his last 22 matches and secured his passage to the second round, where he will face former Canadian Open champion Alexei Popyrin. A revitalizing triumph in confidence for the four-time Grand Slam champion – and against a challenging opponent like Machac, champion of his first title of the season at the Adelaide International just weeks ago.

Sinner’s hierarchy was evident from the start against a rival who was particularly erratic on serve in the first set. Right from the beginning, Machac showed difficulties landing his first serve – and Sinner secured the first break immediately. The Czech managed only 37% of first serves throughout the set, which Sinner exploited from the baseline to be aggressive on the returns.

After taking a 3-0 lead, Sinner didn’t let up, and with fast points and not too many long rallies, the Italian secured his second break and quickly closed the set 6-1 after just 27 minutes, registering 8 winners and 4 unforced errors, against only 3 winners and 10 unforced errors from his rival.

In the second set, Machac managed to find some rhythm thanks to good first serves – giving him more competitiveness when serving. Sinner was patient at the start, waiting for his chance, which arrived in the fifth game. This time, a single opportunity was enough for Sinner to take the break and quickly move ahead on the scoreboard – making a comeback almost impossible for his rival, who couldn’t win two consecutive points on return in the same game.

Machac had to fight from behind to stay in the match: he saved a break point at 2-4 and later three match points at 3-5. However, opportunities returned to Sinner with his service, and he didn’t hesitate to close the victory 6-1, 6-4, securing his place in the second round.

Meanwhile, Doha continues with action and several competitive matches throughout the day. Sixth seed Jakub Mensik had to fight from behind and managed a comeback against Brit Jan Choinski, winning 6-7(6), 6-2, 6-4.

The 20-year-old arrives as one of the favorites, though he still needs to prove it on court, especially after the injury that forced him out of the Australian Open in the fourth round. This being his first tournament, he still needs match rhythm, though his performance against Choinski leaves good impressions regarding his ability to recover in tough moments. He will face in the second round the winner between Zhizhen Zhang and Roberto Carballes Baena.

Another player who had to fight to secure victory was Frenchman Arthur Fils – former world No. 14, looking to add wins after a long absence due to injury. Out for about 8 months, this is only Fils’ third tournament back, and he survived a tough opponent in Kamil Majchrzak, winning 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-3.

The Frenchman had a good showing on serve (Majchrzak barely had a break opportunity and could not convert it), though he still has work to do in terms of precision. Fils had 35 winners, but it was hard to be too dominant with 49 unforced errors (25 of them in the first set). In the second round, he will face the winner between Quentin Halys and former top-10 Pablo Carreño Busta.