Blythe and Cavendish were at close quarters further back, while Groenewegen fixed himself to the German’s wheel but could not come round.
Cavendish held on for third, meanwhile – a result which also highlights his form after he admitted post-stage he had punctured with four kilometres still to race.
“There was obviously no time to get a wheel change but I wanted to get in on the time bonuses for a decent general classification position,” he told his team website.
“Sprinting with a puncture is always going to be difficult against the best sprinters in the world so I’m quite happy in the end.”
Nevertheless, it means Kittel, who won last year’s Dubai Tour overall, will wear the red jersey on stage two with three sprint stages – sandwiching an uphill finish on Hatta Dam – still to come.
Dubai Tour 2017: stage one – result
1) Marcel Kittel (GER) – QuickStep Floors – 4.06.33hrs
2) Dylan Groenewegen (NED) – LottoNL-Jumbo – ST
3) Mark Cavendish (GBR) – Dimension Data
4) John Degenkolb (GER) – Trek-Segafredo
5) Sacha Modolo (ITA) – UAE Abu Dhabi
6) Elia Viviani (ITA) – Team Sky
7) Jempy Drucker (LUX) – BMC Racing
8) Simone Consonne (ITA) – UAE Abu Dhabi
9) Steele von Hoff (AUS) – ONE Pro Cycling
10) Adam Blythe (GBR) – Aqua Blue Sport
Dubai Tour 2017: general classification
1) Marcel Kittel (GER) – QuickStep Floors – 4.06.23hrs
2) Nicola Boem (ITA) – Bardiani-CSF +3”
3) Dylan Groenewegen (NED) – LottoNL-Jumbo +4”
4) Tom Stewart (GBR) – ONE Pro Cycling – ST
5) Mark Cavendish (GBR) – Dimension Data +6″
6) Silvan Dillier (SUI) – BMC Racing – ST
7) John Degenkolb (GER) – Trek-Segafredo +10″
8) Sacha Modolo (ITA) – UAE Abu Dhabi – ST
9) Elia Viviani (ITA) – Team Sky
10) Jempy Drucker (LUX) – BMC Racing
