He sprinted ahead of Yauheni Hutarovich (Ag2r-La Mondiale) and Barry Markus (Vacansoleil-DCM) in Doha to take the final golden jersey for team OmegaPharma-Quick Step.

"I'm over the moon," Cavendish explained. "We came here without Tom Boonen, he got injured and put pressure on me! The guys worked and looked after so well, and just delivered every day. I'm happy to bring it home, it's the fifth time the team won the Tour of Qatar overall. I'm happy to be a part of that."

"It was a nice ride, and I was enthusiastic about officially wearing my new kit. The heritage of this team is incredible; it's been around since 2003. I'm proud to wear this jersey that Tom (Boonen) and the other guys on the team have made unique in the group. Now I, too, want to contribute and feel like this jersey I'm wearing is even more my own."