Jannik Sinner enjoyed a dominant debut at the Qatar Open on Monday as he breezed past Tomas Machac in straight sets. 

Sinner, playing in his first match since his five-set defeat to Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open semi-finals, returned to the court with a 6-1 6-4 win in just over an hour in Doha.

The second seed raced through the opening set, reeling off the first three games before dropping just three points in the final three games to take the early advantage. 

Machac looked more composed at the start of the second as he traded blows with Sinner, but the Italian got the better of his opponents serve in a crucial fifth game. 

And from there, Sinner cruised to the finishing line as he sealed his spot in the round of 16, where he will face Alexei Popyrin, with a blistering serve down the middle of the court. 

Dazzling Doha debut @QatarTennis | #qatarexxonmobilopen | @janniksin pic.twitter.com/PKZTLAjtKf

— ATP Tour (@atptour) February 16, 2026

Sinner will be joined in the next round by Jakub Mensik, who was put through his paces to get past qualifier Jan Choinski earlier in the day. 

Mensik recovered from a set down to clinch a 6-7 (6-8) 6-2 6-4 victory, with his triumph rewarded with a clash against either Zhizhen Zhang or Roberto Carballes Baena.

Data Debrief: Sinner serves up a storm

Sinner overcame what looked a difficult opening game on paper with relative ease, extending his winning streak at ATP 500 level to 11 matches, having won titles in Beijing and Vienna last October. 

And the world number two was dominant on serve, winning 86% (25/29) of his first-serve points compared to Machac's 66% (25/38), with his match-winning ace the seventh he fired throughout the contest, while his opponent only managed one. 

With top seed Carlos Alcaraz also in the field, Sinner will look to share another meeting with the Spaniard. Since Andrey Rublev's triumph in Madrid in May 2024, no other player than Sinner or Alcaraz has captured a tour-level title at an event featuring both of them.