Jakub Mensik stuns Jannik Sinner at Qatar Open as Alcaraz survives Khachanov
Jakub Mensik upset world number two Jannik Sinner in the Qatar Open quarter-finals, beating the Italian 7-6 (7-3) 2-6 6-3 and ending Sinner's run of 22 wins from 23 matches. The result reshuffles the men’s draw in Doha and sends a 20-year-old contender into the semi-finals at a moment that could affect seeding and momentum ahead of the hard-court swing.
Qatar Open quarter-final shocks
Mensik, the sixth seed from the Czech Republic, took the opening set in a tiebreak, surrendered the second, then closed out the decider to eliminate Sinner in their first meeting in Doha. The 20-year-old’s success continued a recent run of strong results — his previous title wins noted in recent coverage came in Miami and Auckland — and now places him into a semi-final against unseeded Arthur Fils, who beat Jiri Lehecka 6-3 6-3 in the last eight.
Sinner's numbers under scrutiny
Sinner’s defeat ended a dominant stretch in which he had won 22 of 23 matches; his only earlier loss in that span was in the Australian Open semi-finals. Match analysis highlighted that Sinner won more points than his opponent but could not close the match. Commenting after the loss, Sinner said that the team would look for improvements but that there was no disaster, and that he had been working on some physical issues as well as adjustments to his game. Publicly available match data showed his break-point conversion in 2026 at 34 percent, down from 44. 6 percent in 2025, a concrete indicator that conversion under pressure has changed this season. Observers also flagged moments when his forehand was less reliable than usual, turning a normally winning shot into one that cost points late in the match.
Alcaraz and Rublev advance
Top seed and world number one Carlos Alcaraz reached the other semi-final after coming from behind to beat Karen Khachanov 6-7 (3-7) 6-4 6-3, stretching his winning start to the year to 10 matches following the Australian Open title. Andrey Rublev, the fifth seed, beat Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3 7-6 (7-2) and will meet Alcaraz in the remaining semi-final. Those results mean the tournament will not produce an Alcaraz–Sinner final in Doha this week.
For Mensik, going deeper at the qatar open creates a rankings buffer ahead of the Miami Masters in late March, where he is the defending champion; for Sinner, the loss provides a concrete performance checkpoint before the upcoming hard-court events that were mentioned as the next stops on his calendar. If Sinner's break-point conversion and forehand timing return toward last season’s levels, he is likely to regain momentum; if those indicators stay depressed, closing matches against top opponents could remain a challenge.
Doubles final lineup set
The doubles draw also reached its final stages. Top seeds Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool booked their return to the final after beating Quentin Halys and Pierre-Hugues Herbert 6-2 6-3 in the semi-finals. They will face the third seeds, Henry Patten and Harri Heliovaara, who claimed a 7-5 6-4 win over Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori. Cash and Glasspool had won the Doha title previously and enter the match with a chance to retain that crown.
What happens next: Mensik will carry his upset momentum into the semi-final against Fils, who is playing for his second final of 2026 after winning in Auckland last month. Alcaraz and Rublev’s semi-final sets up a clash between the top seed and the fifth seed, with both players entering the match off straight-set and three-set wins that tested different aspects of their games. Observers will be watching serve security, break-point conversion, and forehand effectiveness as clear, observable indicators that will shape expectations for the remainder of the tournament and the run into the North American hard-court swing.
