Will Alcaraz Make it in Time to Defend His Madrid Open Title?

The playing field in the 2024 Madrid Open is almost set, as almost all of the top players in the ATP have confirmed that they’re going to compete next week.

Just like in recent competitions, Novak Djokovic will enter the ATP 1000 tournament as the top seed, and he’ll be joined by the likes of Jannik Sinner, Daniil Medvedev, Alexander Zverev, Casper Ruud, and Stefanos Tsitsipas, among others.

Avid tennis fans like myself are hoping that Djokovic’s Big 3 colleague Rafael Nadal can join the festivities, and he is working his way back.

Meanwhile, world no. 3 Carlos Alcaraz is questionable to play because it was revealed that he hasn’t fully healed from his injury.

Learn more about the latest Madrid Open 2024 updates, courtesy of SBOTOP.

Alcaraz sweating on his fitness

Carlos Alcaraz is chasing history next week, as he plans to become the first player ever to win three consecutive Madrid Open titles. However, it all boils down to whether he’ll be 100-per cent fit.

The young Spaniard had to pull out of his second-round match against Felix Auger-Aliassime during the second round of the Monte-Carlo Masters after sustaining a forearm injury. Because of his retirement, lucky loser Lorenzo Sonego took his spot, and the Italian capitalised.

The hope for Alcaraz is that his early withdrawal and absence from the Barcelona Open will give him enough time to fully recover, with the Madrid Open just around the corner.

“My feeling isn’t right, but it is what it is. Now I’m fully focused on recovery, and I have a little more time,” Alcaraz said on Monday.

“My goal is to try and go to the Madrid Open, but at the moment nothing is certain. I was given specific recovery times and I’ve respected them, but I haven’t felt good. I don’t want to get ahead of myself,” he added.

Should Alcaraz not make it in time to compete in the Madrid Open, the Madrid Open 2024 odds will tilt towards Djokovic’s favor even more, and the Italian Open is his next opportunity to get some clay-court action as he ramps up ahead of Roland Garros.

Encouraging signs for Nadal

The king of clay seeks to find his form at home in the upcoming Madrid Open — Rafael Nadal in action during his match against Alex De Minaur in Barcelona Open

Rafael Nadal was back in action when he competed in the Barcelona Open. He won his first match back against the young Flavio Cobolli in the Round of 64, but his comeback was cut short when he lost to Alex de Minaur in the next round.

Although he exited earlier than he should, seeing the 22-time Grand Slam winner is a sight for sore eyes since he hasn’t played competitively since January during the Brisbane International, where he made it to the quarter-finals but picked up a hip injury, thus pulling out of the Australian Open, Indian Wells Masters, and the Monte-Carlos Masters.

“A week ago, I felt I was not able to play any more at this event, and that would be painful. But at least I played, and now it’s the moment to keep going,” Nadal said after losing to de Minaur in the Barcelona Open.

“I’ll try to take a step further in Madrid, then in Rome, and if, in any tournament, it’s worth going out there to give everything and die, it’s in Paris,” he added.

The Mallorca native is determined to remind the world once again why he is the King of Clay despite being ranked as the 644^th player in the ATP (which is unheard of). But while he still is, it’s important that he won’t strain himself when he competes in the Madrid Open starting next week.

Ruud and Tsitsipas looking sharp

World Nos. 6 and 7, Casper Ruud and Stefanos Tsitsipas, are two players to watch out for in the Madrid Open because of the way they’ve been playing lately.

Ruud has made it at least to the semi-finals in each of his last three tournaments, while Tsitsipas just won the Monte-Carlo Masters when he defeated Ruud and is also into the Barcelona Open semi-finals.

Ruud has breezed through the competition here at the Barcelona Open, but he’ll face a formidable opponent in Tomas Martin Etcheverry in the semi-finals.

On the other hand, Tsitsipas is coming off a hard-fought, three-sets victory against Facundo Diaz Acosta, and he’ll take on Dusan Lajovic in the semi-finals.

Assuming Casper Ruud and Stefanos Tsitsipas win their respective semi-final bouts, we will see these two players again in what might be another fun final that can go either way since they are 2-2 in their overall head-to-heads.

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