Carlos Alcaraz overcomes ‘difficult moments’ to win first match since Australian Open triumph at Qatar Open
Published 17/02/2026 at 22:51 GMT
Carlos Alcaraz marked his first match as Australian Open champion with a reasonably straightforward victory over World No. 30 Arthur Rinderknech. The Spaniard faced just one break point during a 6-4 7-6 victory in the first round of the Qatar Open. It marked his return to the court after a two-week break. And despite admitting he faced some "difficult moments", the 22-year-old prevailed.
Alcaraz and Sinner star in best shots from Australian Open
Video credit: TNT Sports
Carlos Alcaraz has won his first match since lifting the Australian Open title, but admits he had to come through some "difficult moments" to do so.
The Spaniard is the top seed at the Qatar Open, where he was paired with Arthur Rinderknech in the first round.
The two were involved in a near two-hour tussle that the seven-time grand slam champion eventually won 6-4 7-6.
"It was really difficult," Alcaraz conceded afterwards. "Arthur is a really dangerous player. Nobody wants to play against him in the first round."
Alcaraz came into the match fresh, having not played competitively since beating Novak Djokovic to complete a career Grand Slam in Melbourne 16 days ago.
And he hit the ground running, holding his opening two service games to love.
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The same could not be said of Rinderknech, who faced a couple of break points at 1-1, before eventually dropping serve to go 3-2 behind.
From there, Alcaraz did not look back, even wasting three more break point opportunities in the seventh game before taking the set 6-4.
Things were not as straightforward in the second set though, when the Frenchman was much more resilient.
He dropped just one point behind his own serve as the first six games were shared.
Even after 12 games, the pair could not be split, albeit Rinderknech brought up - and wasted - his first breakpoint at 6-5.
Once into the tie-break, Alcaraz twice took points off his opponent's serve as he claimed it 7-5.
"I'm happy with the level," Alcaraz added of his performance. "I'm happy that I got through difficult moments in the match.
"I'm happy that I stayed calm and positive, and played great tennis."
Next up, Alcaraz will face Frenchman Valentin Royer, who is ranked 60th in the world.
That is after Royer defeated his fellow countryman Pierre-Hugues Herbert 6-0 6-3 in the first round.
Elsewhere, there were wins in Qatar for Andrey Rublev, Zizou Bergs and Karen Khachanov.
The man who knocked Alcaraz out last year, Jiri Lehecka, is also through, after beating Jenson Brooksby in straight sets.
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