World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz begins his 2026 season post-Australian Open triumph at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open in Doha, facing Arthur Rinderknech in the first round. Second seed Jannik Sinner also debuts against Tomas Machac amid a strong field. The ATP 500 event features fast hard courts at Khalifa International Tennis Complex.
Carlos Alcaraz, fresh off completing his Career Grand Slam with the Australian Open title, enters the Qatar ExxonMobil Open as the top seed and No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings. The Spaniard, a 25-time tour-level champion, arrives with a perfect 7-0 record for the season. In his pre-tournament press conference, Alcaraz emphasized continuous improvement despite his successes. "Obviously I can see myself that [I have had] a lot of success so far, winning the biggest tournaments in the world," he said. "But I just see myself with weaknesses. A lot of players... are studying my game, trying to beat me."
Alcaraz opens against Top 30 player Arthur Rinderknech on February 17 at Khalifa International Tennis Complex. He leads their head-to-head 4-0, with predictions favoring a straight-sets win given his 35% first-serve return points won and 44% break-point conversion rate from 2025. Last year, Alcaraz reached the quarterfinals in Doha on debut, and he aims to advance further without overlooking challenges. The draw includes strong first-round matchups, as Alcaraz noted: "I think this draw is a really tough one for a 500 tournament."
Jannik Sinner, the world No. 2 and second seed, starts on February 16 against Tomas Machac, leading their head-to-head 2-0 in straight sets. Sinner, who reached the Australian Open semifinals before losing to Novak Djokovic, seeks his first title of 2026 after six in 2025. Machac, ranked No. 31, retired in Montpellier due to a knee injury but won the Adelaide title earlier this year. Analysts predict Sinner in two sets, citing his 79% first-serve points won and superior consistency.
Other notable Day 1 matches include Daniil Medvedev vs. Shang Juncheng and Jakub Mensik vs. Jan Choinski. Alcaraz, who stopped in Bahrain to visit Formula 1 stars Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz, focuses on process over results: "We set up some goals for this tournament... more about the process to be better." The tournament highlights the rivals' Lexus ATP Head2Head, potentially setting up a 17th meeting in the final.
