Tomas Machac, of the Czech Republic and ranked 31st in the world, posed little trouble for the Italian, who won 6–1, 6–4 in the first round of the ATP tournament in Doha, Qatar.
This clears the first obstacle on the way to a possible chance for revenge against his Melbourne final opponent, world number one Carlos Alcaraz.
The Spaniard is also making a comeback in Doha after withdrawing from last week's tournament in Rotterdam.
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