MADRID/WASHINGTON, April 25, 2026 (by Michael Dickens)
What a first week it’s been for Spanish teenage sensation Rafael Jodar at the Mutua Madrid Open in Spain’s capital city.
First, the 19-year-old wild card rallied from a set down to defeat Jesper De Jong of the Netherlands in Wednesday’s first round, joining Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz as the only Spanish teenagers to record a main draw men’s singles win in tournament history.
Then, on Friday night before an electric, sold-out Manolo Santana Stadium at Caja Magica, the #NextGenATP star took on World No. 8 and fifth-seeded Alex de Minaur of Australia – and won 6-3, 6-1 in 75 minutes to earn his first Top-10 triumph of his career.
Hometown hero
Rafael Jodar takes out the No. 5 seed, de Minaur, to advance to R3 in Madrid! @MutuaMadridOpen | #MMOPEN pic.twitter.com/vU1aVtoLLB
— ATP Tour (@atptour) April 24, 2026
The 27-year-old de Minaur came in 12-1 in his opening rounds on clay since 2023 at Roland-Garros – his lone loss coming against Nadal two years ago in the second round on the very same court that he was facing Jodar.
It took Jodar very little time to establish himself – and to get the crowd behind him – as the sun set over Madrid. By the end of the second-round tussle, Jodar had thoroughly outplayed the Sydneysider. With a combo of power and pinpoint accuracy – and Jodar hitting confidently and consistently from both wings – the right-handed-hitting Madrid native outpointed de Minaur 64-44. He converted six of 13 break points and taking full advantage of 26 unforced errors by the Aussie No. 1.
At the conclusion, after Jodar secured match point with a solid inside-out, fourth-shot forehand winner, his 15th winner of the match, the young Spaniard raised his arms in victory and the moment was his to savor. It was his 10th tour-level victory on clay, after winning his first ATP Tour title earlier this month in Marrakech, then followed it with a semifinal run at Barcelona last week.
JOD MODE
19-year-old Rafael Jodar knocks down de Minaur 6-3 6-1 to set up a clash with Fonseca in Madrid!#MMOpen pic.twitter.com/3LVT7yV3rm
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) April 24, 2026
During his on-court interview with ATP Media, Jodar, who grew up watching Nadal play on the very same Manolo Santana Stadium he beat de Minaur on, was asked if it felt a bit surreal that the Spanish fans were chanting “Rafa” for him like they did for Rafa Nadal.
“Yeah, it was crazy you know, crazy feelings,” Jodar said, smiling. “I’m super happy to get my second win here in Madrid, in my home tournament, where I used to come when I was a kid. I used to watch all these top players in the stands. Now, being able to play here on the center court means a lot to me.”
How did Jodar handle the nerves of playing in front of a sold-out crowd that was cheering for him after every point he scored compared to his first match?
“I think the first match [against De Jong] really helped me get used to the conditions [tonight],” he said. “This was different than the conditions I was playing last week in Barcelona. I did a great job trying to handle playing all the important points under pressure of this match.”
@atptour | @ATPTour_ES | #MMOPEN pic.twitter.com/iHGtamtH9h
— #MMOPEN (@MutuaMadridOpen) April 24, 2026
Jodar, now 15-7 this season, has equaled his best ATP Masters 1000 run after reaching the third round at the Miami Open last month and he’s the second man born in 2006 or later to earn a Top 10 win after Joao Fonseca of Brazil, whom he will face in Sunday’s third-round in a battle between the two youngest players ranked inside the ATP Top 100.
Fonseca advanced to the third round by walkover after his second-round opponent, No. 51 Marin Cilic of Croatia, withdrew due to illness.
Sinner reacts to latest Alcaraz news
World No. 1 and top seed Jannik Sinner was in the midst of winning his opening-round match against 106th-ranked qualifier Benjamin Bonzi of France – his 18th straight victory – when the news broke that World No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz of Spain would not defend his titles in Rome or Roland-Garros, where he is a two-time defending champion, due to his wrist injury, which he suffered las week competing in Barcelona. Alcaraz made his announcement via social media.
After Sinner secured his 6-7 (6), 6-1, 6-4 victory to advance to the third round on Sunday, he was asked about to comment about Alcaraz effectively shutting down his clay season in order to recover properly from the injury.
Inevitable.@janniksin navigates a tricky opener vs Bonzi 6-7 6-1 6-4 to make it TWENTY-THREE Masters 1000 wins a row!#MMOpen pic.twitter.com/AdAm7sFTQZ
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) April 24, 2026
“I think most important is to say that first of all, tennis needs Carlos,” Sinner said during his post-match news conference. “Tennis is a much better sport when he’s around. …
“It’s nice when he is around,” Sinner added. “It makes me look also in the draw and seeing matches in a different way, even though if I would face Carlos, it would always be in the final, being a No. 1 and No. 2 seed.”
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Sinner said he’s glad that Alcaraz is taking a cautious approach in handling his wrist injury. For now, Alcaraz has not set a specific time table for his return.
“I do believe he’s going to come back stronger than before, but injury is always tough, especially wrist,” he said. “There are certain areas of our body that are very sensitive, and the wrist, we saw with all the players in the past, can complicate our lives. So, I hope he’s going to come back and he will not have any further injuries.
“But I also believe that it’s good that he and his team take the time, because if you come back too early, then maybe you have a bigger problem afterwards. And we all want that he’s competitive from when he’s going to come back. Well, in this case, now it’s next goal, I guess, for him. And I hope so, I guess it’s Wimbledon. So, I hope he’s going to be back there.
“Whoever’s in the draw, it’s always a long way in any case. This is all secondary now. I send him a speedy recovery, though it’s painful and very sad for all tennis.”
