His two losses in 26 matches this season have come at the hands of Djokovic in the Australian Open semifinals and then 16th-ranked Jakub Mensik in the quarterfinals of the ATP 500 event in Doha.
“I think every different kind of clay court can help me as I am trying to improve as a player. Here, it might be one of the most challenging ones because of certain things and also depending on who you play,” he said.
“I have never played very well here, so let’s see how it goes this year. But I’m very happy to be here.”
In his opener, Sinner meets the winner of a clash between French qualifiers Benjamin Bonzi and Titouan Drouget. The highest seeds in his quarter are No. 5 Alex de MInaur (13-0 in head-to-head series) and No. 9 Andrey Rublev, the 2024 champion.
