Australian Open champion Carlos Alcaraz will return to court when he faces Arthur Rinderknech in the first round of the Doha ATP 500 on Tuesday. Jiri Lehecka and Jenson Brooksby are also in the lineup.
(1) Carlos Alcaraz vs. Arthur Rinderknecht
Alcaraz and Rinderknech will meet for the fifth time in their careers when they compete in the first round of the Qatar ExxonMobil Open on Tuesday. All four of their previous encounters have gone Alcaraz’s way. Rinderknech took a set in their first two meetings, but the Spaniard went 7-5, 6-4 last summer on the Queen’s Club grass courts and 7-6(3), 6-3, 6-4 a few months later at the US Open.
It is almost impossible to see Rinderknech over the hump in Doha. The 30th-ranked Frenchman is 3-3 this season and his only win over anyone ranked better than 200 came at the expense of ice-cold Flavio Cobolli in a three-set United Cup match. Rinderknech lost to Fabian Marozan early in the Australian Open and Stefanos Tsitsipas in the first round of Rotterdam, both in straight sets. Alcaraz has enjoyed plenty of time off since winning the Australian Open, so the world number 1 should be ready to get back into gear.
Pick: Alcaraz at 2
(8) Jiri Lehecka vs. Jenson Brooksby
Brooksby played earlier this month in Dallas but decided to close out February’s Doha-Dubai swing rather than take his talents to Delray Beach and Acapulco. There may be a result, because the world map number 47 is open. Lehecka is not in good shape and Alexander Bublik, who withdrew, was in the same bracket.
This marks the second meeting between Brooksby and Lehecka after the American won 6-0, 4-6, 7-5 at the Futures event on the hard court in 2021 in Villena. Brooksby is just 1-3 this year, but he played well during Dallas’ loss to Tommy Paul in a third-round tiebreaker. Lehecka is 2-2 and fell to Arthur Gea in straight sets in the first round of the Australian Open. The 22nd-ranked Czech is under pressure to secure a spot in the semi-finals, while Brooksby will be motivated to make the most of his trip to the Middle East.
Pick: Brooksby at 3
