Alcaraz Confirms Participation in Madrid

The Madrid Masters 1,000, scheduled from April 21 to May 4, confirmed on Wednesday the participation of Carlos Alcaraz, one of the top contenders for the title and winner of the 2022 and 2023 editions. The Murcian will compete for the fifth time in the tournament as the second seed, just behind Alexander Zverev, who will not miss his appointment with a tournament he triumphed in 2018 and 2021.

This will be, if all goes well, the third tournament in Alcaraz's clay court tour, starting with the Monte Carlo Masters 1,000 from April 6 to 13, followed by the Conde de Godó in Barcelona from April 14 to 20. It will be three intense weeks for the player from El Palmar, who will cling to the clay to reverse the trend of a season in which he has only lifted one title, in Rotterdam, and was eliminated too early in the first two Masters 1,000 of the year. He fell in the semifinals of Indian Wells and in the second round in Miami.

Madrid always brings good memories for Alcaraz, although this year it will not coincide with his birthday, as he won this tournament in 2022 against Zverev and in 2023 against Jan-Lennard Struff. In total, he has played 17 matches with only two losses, against Rafa Nadal in 2021 and Andrey Rublev in last year's quarterfinals.

If he secures the title once more, he would match the three titles held by Novak Djokovic, returning after three years of absence, and Roger Federer. Only Nadal, who was crowned five times in Madrid during his career, would be ahead.

In addition to confirming the presence of the world number three, the Madrid Masters organization also secured the participation of Zverev, Rublev, the reigning champion, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Casper Ruud, Daniil Medvedev, Taylor Fritz, and Alex de Minaur. The Brazilian Joao Fonseca, the rising star of the men's circuit in 2025, will also be present.

In the women's draw, the two main title contenders, who thrilled the audience with a great final last year, Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka, will not be missing, along with Mirra Andreeva, who recently won in Dubai and Indian Wells. Paula Badosa will lead the Spanish representation in a tournament where her best result was reaching the semifinals in 2021.