After a thrilling week in Monte-Carlo, the ATP Tour continues its clay-court season with events in Barcelona, Banja Luka and Munich.

Carlos Alcaraz headlines the field at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, an ATP 500 event. World No. 1 Novak Djokovic is the top seed at the Srpska Open and Monte-Carlo finalist Holger Rune will try to maintain his momentum at the BMW Open by American Express.

ATPTour.com examines what to watch for at each of the three tournaments.

View Draws: Barcelona | Banja Luka | Munich

FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN BARCELONA
1) Alcaraz Defending Champ: Alcaraz returns to the Real Club de Tenis Barcelona-1899, where he captured the title last year. The World No. 2 is 18-2 with two titles (Buenos Aires and Indian Wells) this season. Last year Alcaraz arrived in Barcelona having never won a match at the tournament, but he triumphed in three three-setters en route to the trophy. The 19-year-old will open against Ilya Ivashka or Nuno Borges.

2) Sinner Shining: The third player in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin, Jannik Sinner is playing the best tennis of his career. The Italian has advanced to at least the semi-finals in his past five tournaments (title in Montpellier and finals in Rotterdam and Miami). The 2021 Barcelona semi-finalist will try to make a deeper run this edition, beginning with a match against Diego Schwartzman or Wu YIbing in the second round.

3) Stars To Watch: There are many more players to watch throughout the draw, led by two-time Barcelona finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas, who is the second seed. Estoril champion Casper Ruud, the third seed, will try to continue regaining his momentum after a slow start to the season, and fifth seed Frances Tiafoe begins his European campaign after capturing his first clay-court title in Houston.

4) Spanish Armada: Alcaraz headlines a strong contingent of 11 Spaniards in the main draw. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina is the 10th seed and Roberto Bautista Agut is the 13th seed. Bautista Agut could be a third-round opponent for Alcaraz. The tournament’s wild cards went to home favourites Pablo Andujar, Feliciano Lopez, Daniel Rincon and Fernando Verdasco.

5) Loaded Doubles Field: Wesley Koolhof/Neal Skupski and Rajeev Ram/Joe Salisbury are the top two seeds in a loaded field, with the year’s three Masters 1000 champions, Matthew Ebden/Rohan Bopanna (Indian Wells), Santiago Gonzalez/Edouard Roger-Vasselin (Miami) and Ivan Dodig/Austin Krajicek (Monte-Carlo), all unseeded. Tsitsipas (w/ Nicolas Mahut) and Sinner (w/ Alex de Minaur) are also in the field.

FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN BANJA LUKA
1) Djokovic In Action Again: One week after a tough third-round loss to Lorenzo Musetti in Monte-Carlo, Djokovic will try to regain his momentum in Banja Luka. The World No. 1 is 16-2 this season and has lifted trophies in Adelaide and at the Australian Open. He will face a tough opening test against former World No. 3 Stan Wawrinka or #NextGenATP Frenchman Luca Van Assche.

2) Rublev Rising: Second seed Andrey Rublev arrives in Bosnia and Herzegovina high on confidence after winning his first ATP Masters 1000 title in Monte-Carlo. Having earned four of his 13 ATP Tour titles on clay, Rublev will try to add another on the surface to his collection this week. He opens against Hugo Gaston or Juan Pablo Varillas.

3) Wawrinka On Title Hunt: Wawrinka has shown glimpses of his best form in recent weeks, including when he ousted Monte-Carlo champion Holger Rune at Indian Wells. Will this be the week Wawrinka wins his first crown since 2017 in Geneva? The Swiss will face a stern opening challenge against the rapidly rising Van Assche to earn an even more difficult match with top-seeded Djokovic.

4) Monfils Leads Wild Cards: Singles wild cards were awarded to former Top 10 star Gael Monfils, Serbian Hamad Medjedovic (coached by Viktor Troicki) and home favourite Damir Dzumhur. Monfils is trying to return to form after missing more than six months due to a foot injury.

5) Murray/Venus Top Doubles Seeds: Jamie Murray and Michael Venus headline the doubles field. With 46 tour-level doubles crowns between them, they will try secure their second title as a team after triumphing earlier this year in Dallas. Belgians Sander Gille and Joran Vliegen, this season’s Pune and Estoril champions, are the second seeds.

FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN MUNICH
1) Rune Top Seed: The Danish star Rune reached his second ATP Masters 1000 final in Monte-Carlo and added two more Top 10 wins to his growing resumé in the Principality. The 19-year-old will try to go a step further in Munich, where he triumphed last year on tournament debut. Rune will begin his tournament against Thiago Monteiro or Yannick Hanfmann.

2) Zverev Home Favourite: Third seed Alexander Zverev is a two-time champion in Munich, where he owns a 14-6 record. The German will be making his ninth appearance in the ATP 250 and will try to make a good start against Ugo Humbert or Christopher O’Connell.

3) Fritz On Fire: Second seed Taylor Fritz made a good start to his clay-court season in Monte-Carlo, where he advanced to the semi-finals of a Masters 1000 event for the first time on the surface. The American, already a champion this year in Delray Beach, will attempt to claim his maiden clay-court crown.

4) Thiem’s Time? Dominic Thiem returns to Munich for the first time since 2016, when he reached the final. The Austrian, who is competing in singles and doubles (with Matthias Bachinger) this week, has gained momentum in his quest for top form by reaching the Estoril quarter-finals and defeating former Top 10 star Richard Gasquet in Monte-Carlo.

5) Home Favourites Top Doubles Seeds: German Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz are the top seeds in the doubles draw. They will try to secure their first ATP Tour title together this week. The field is tough, though, with second seeds Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah one of the most consistent duos over the past decade.

Andrey Rublev is a fans’ favourite and has been a fixture inside the world’s Top 10 for more than two years. But it was Sunday on Court Rainier III when he stepped into the sun.

Rublev’s reaction said it all. After hitting an ace to close out his victory against Holger Rune in the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters final, the champion fell to the court and covered his face with his hands. He laid still on the red clay of the Monte-Carlo Country Club, where legends from Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic to Bjorn Borg and Ivan Lendl had triumphed. The fifth seed had not only joined them, but became an ATP Masters 1000 titlist for the first time.

“Finally I did it. I did it in Monaco with the really historic tournament. It’s a pleasure to be part of it,” Rublev said. “To win [a] match like this, losing 4-1, Love-30, break point for 5-1, and to be able to come back and to win [the] match is like a fairy tale today.”

^{Photo Credit: Corinne Dubreuil/ATP Tour}
The 25-year-old’s emotions were unmistakable. After embracing Rune and shaking hands with chair umpire Aurelie Tourte, Rublev turned to the crowd to give his thanks. There were tears in his eyes.

After rallying in the third set, it felt like there could have been a twist or two left when Rublev stepped to the baseline to serve for the championship at 6-5 in the final set. It surprised Rublev when he quickly earned a 40/0 lead.

“Before my first match point, I was thinking how weird that it [was] 40-Love, first of all,” Rublev said. “And then I was thinking, ‘Just go for it. Don’t think. Just go for it.’ That’s it.”

Rublev converted his second championship point by delivering his fifth ace of the match and as he enjoyed the moment, the fans showered him with support.

The 13-time ATP Tour champion has quickly become a fans’ favourite, whether from wearing his heart on his sleeve or cracking the fans up with hilarious off-court moments.

“To have this support, it means that for sure I can be a better person and I can work on it and I can improve and to try to share it with others,” Rublev said. “To have this support, I feel really, really grateful, because, I don’t know, it’s not easy to get support in general. To get a good support is really tough.”

With the fans’ support behind him and plenty of success on his resumé — Rublev cracked the Top 5 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings in 2021 and qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals each year from 2020-22 — the 25-year-old was waiting for his biggest breakthrough yet.

While some would have been frustrated after losing two Masters 1000 finals as Rublev did in 2021 in Monte-Carlo and Cincinnati, Rublev continued to put the work in. It was fitting he claimed his first title at the level on the same court where he lost his first final two years ago.

“I was thinking that if I do the things right outside the court, practising-wise, I will have chances to win the big titles,” Rublev said. “The thing is I didn’t know when it’s going to happen, this year, last year, two years ago, because I played two finals before. I played [a] couple of times semi-finals, and I couldn’t make it. In the end, [it] happened here.

“I didn’t really expect that I’m going to win the title before [this] week, but then match by match I started to win, and then somehow I ended up winning.”

Teenager Holger Rune fell just short of capturing his second ATP Masters 1000 title on Sunday, when he lost against Andrey Rublev in the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters final. Despite his defeat, the Dane is proud of his efforts at the clay-court event.

“I obviously feel like it was a long match yesterday. We finished late,” said Rune, who beat Jannik Sinner in a late-night semi-final thriller on Saturday to reach the final. “I didn’t have much time to recover. It is what it is. I gave it all. Didn’t have any more in me. I did what I could, and I was very close.”

The 19-year-old Dane led Rublev 4-1 in the third set, but was unable to close out, with the fifth seed rallying to clinch his first title at this level. Rune, who was aiming to become the first teenager to triumph in Monte-Carlo since a then-19-year-old Rafael Nadal won the title in 2006, is determined to take the lessons from falling short in his second ATP Masters 1000 final.

“I was definitely in control in the third set and also I would say mostly in the first set as well,” Rune said. ” But again, I didn’t manage to close it out. Disappointing, but again, it’s part of tennis.”

Rune overcame Dominic Thiem, Daniil Medvedev and Sinner en route to his first tour-level final of the season. The 2022 Paris champion will rise to a career-high No. 7 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings on Monday following his run in the Principality.

Rune will now head to the ATP 250 event in Munich, where he is the defending champion.

Andrey Rublev clinched his first ATP Masters 1000 title on Sunday when he overcame teenager Holger Rune 5-7, 6-2, 7-5 at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters.

In a clash between two of the biggest ball-strikers on the ATP Tour, it was the fifth seed who prevailed on a sunbathed Court Rainier III. Rublev struck 33 winners and rallied from 1-4 in the third set to earn the 13th and biggest title of his career after two hours and 34 minutes. Rublev sealed victory with his fifth ace of the match, dropping to the floor in celebration.

“I have tears,” Rublev said. “I don’t know what to say. I am so happy. I have been struggling so much to win a Masters 1000 tournament. Trailing 1-4, 0/30, then saving break points, thinking there is no chance to win. But somehow I did it.”

With his 18th tour-level win of the season, Rublev improved to 1-2 in ATP Masters 1000 finals, having lost against Stefanos Tsitsipas in Monte-Carlo and Alexander Zverev in Cincinnati in 2021.

“I was hoping deep inside that I would have one chance,” Rublev said. “Play until the end. I remember the previous finals and when I was losing I thought I’d have no chance and mentally I was going down. But today I thought, ‘Just believe until the end’, and this is what I was trying to do in the third set, hoping I would have an extra chance to come back and what a way to do it.”

An unforgettable moment for @AndreyRublev97 ✨@ROLEXMCMASTERS | #RolexMonteCarloMasters pic.twitter.com/treiPrTpmS

— ATP Tour (@atptour) April 16, 2023

The 25-year-old, who clawed past American Taylor Fritz in the semi-finals, has climbed seven spots to fifth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin following his first tour-level title of the season.

The 19-year-old Rune was aiming to clinch his second ATP Masters 1000 crown after defeating five Top 10 opponents en route to the title in Paris last year. The Dane will now head to the ATP 250 event in Munich, where he is the defending champion, holding a 17-8 record on the season. Rune was the first teenager to reach the final in Monte-Carlo since a then-19-year-old Rafael Nadal lifted the trophy in 2006.

The sixth seed is up two spots to No. 7 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings following the run to his first final of the year.

First-Time ATP Masters 1000 Champions Since Start of 2022

With Formula 1 star Charles Leclerc watching on, both players made a fast start to the first Masters 1000 clay-court final of the season. Rune and Rublev both looked to take large cuts at the ball with their aggressive groundstrokes, with the former using the drop shot in the first set effectively to disrupt Rublev’s rhythm.

The Dane, who sunk Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals, saved seven of the eight break points he faced in the first set, frustrating Rublev before breaking the fifth seed in the 12th game of the set to lead.

Rublev was quick to respond in the second set, though. He won 90 per cent (9/10) of his first-serve points and was more clinical in the big moments on return, forcing Rune deep with his power to break twice and level.

The Dane raced into a 3-0 lead in the third set, hitting with fierce accuracy on return to gain the initiative. However, from 1-4, Rublev worked his way back into the match. He fended off two break points at 1-4 and then clawed himself level with aggressive hitting. At 5-5, Rune gifted Rublev the decisive break when he struck a double fault at 30/40. Rublev then closed out on serve to improve to 2-1 in his ATP Head2Head series against Rune.

Editor’s note: This story was translated from ATPTour.com/es

It is practically impossible to walk the corridors of the Real Club de Tenis Barcelona-1899 at this year’s Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell without hearing Carlos Alcaraz’s name. On top of being the first seed, the 19-year-old Spaniard is the defending champion at the ATP 500 event.

The world No. 2 is bidding to successfully defend an ATP title for the first time next week in Catalunya. He attempted the feat in Umag last year, but his campaign ended in the final against Jannik Sinner. Earlier this season in Rio de Janeiro, where he played Cameron Norrie in the championship match, the result was the same. At the ATP Masters 1000 in Miami he bowed out in the semi-finals.

Alcaraz has come close to defending his titles on every attempt so far but has never managed to reclaim his throne. This week in Barcelona, he is hoping it will be a different story, although a relaxed Alcaraz is keen to distance himself from any kind of pressure.

“We’ll be thinking about everything, apart from defending the title,” he said with a smile at the pre-tournament press conference. “Barcelona is a place I love playing in, where I have really amazing memories, not just from last year, but also from playing when I was young. I’m going to try and avoid that pressure to defend the title.”

He will certainly enjoy the support of the crowds. As always when playing at home, his family, friends, and the legions of fans he has amassed since bursting onto the scene will be right behind him. However, he does not yet know who his first opponent will be (the winner of the clash between Ilya Ivashka and Nuno Borges).

“I’m a player who looks at the route to the final, but only briefly,” he said of his defence of the crown. “But my focus is on the first round, and it will stay there until I’ve played it.”

Looking at the draw, which doesn’t include his compatriot and 12-time champion Rafael Nadal, does nothing to improve his chances. At least that is the 2022 champion’s opinion.

“I’m a tennis player but I’m also a tennis fan and I always want to see the best players at every tournament. With what Rafa has achieved at this tournament, it’s a shame not to have him here, not to be able to enjoy his tennis and I wish him a speedy recovery.

“The absences don’t make me feel like more of a favourite. Every match is huge and every player in the draw can beat me, no problem,” he said about the strong field at the Barcelona event. “I have to stay focused and play my best in every match. I don’t feel like a favourite at all, every match is huge, and I have to play as well as possible.”

Among the other names in the draw are Stefanos Tsitsipas, Casper Ruud and Jannik Sinner. Alcaraz was full of praise for the latter, with whom he may cross paths in the semi-final.

“Whenever we play, I think it’s very fun to watch and they are great matches,” he said. “I hope to have a rivalry with Jannik like the ones between great players like Rafa, Djokovic and Federer. Also, we get on well off-court.”

Whatever Alcaraz has to say on the matter, he will not easily shake off the label of favourite. But, what’s different about the Murcia native since last year’s win?

“Maturity,” came the immediate response. “Both on and off the court, I feel more mature, I read the situation on court better so I can change something if it’s going badly. That’s the only difference I see in myself compared to last year. I feel the same in terms of shots.”

Alcaraz is starting this clay swing with no recent matches on the surface. However, he claimed a title on the surface in February in Buenos Aires before his run to the final in Rio de Janeiro. He also recently added a new ATP Masters 1000 trophy to his cabinet in Indian Wells.

He defines his love for this week’s surface in the following way: “To me, playing on clay is like being in a battle and that’s what I like about it. Every point is a battle, you have to play tactically and that’s the great thing about playing on this surface.”

That is precisely what the Spaniard will be doing once again, back on the clay of his homeland.

Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek captured their first ATP Masters 1000 crown as a team Sunday when they saved two match points to overcome Monegasque-Austrian wild cards Romain Arneodo and Sam Weissborn 6-0, 4-6, 14-12 at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters.

In a dramatic final at the clay-court event, the fifth seeds raced out of the blocks to quickly clinch the first set, before they saved two match points in the Match Tie-break at 9/10 and 11/12 to eventually advance after one hour and 33 minutes.

“It’s amazing, I think,” said Dodig. “This is the one I was missing in my collection and I played the final I think in 2014. It’s great. I think every player who plays tennis at a professional level wants to win this tournament. It’s the first tournament on clay, it’s so prestigious and I’m really, really happy to have this trophy.”

Your 2023 @ROLEXMCMASTERS Doubles Champions 🏆 @DodigTennis | @AustinKrajicek | #RolexMonteCarloMasters pic.twitter.com/DKj804Wpbz

— ATP Tour (@atptour) April 16, 2023

Monegasque Arneodo was aiming to become the first home player to win the title in the Principality in the Open Era (since 1968). The 30-year-old and Austrian Weissborn arrived in Monte-Carlo holding a 2-4 tour-level record, but enjoyed a dream run to the final, upsetting seeds Rajeev Ram/Joe Salisbury and Lloyd Glasspool/Harri Heliovaara.

Backed by vocal support on Court Rainier III, they battled hard in the title match, but ultimately fell short, with Dodig and Krajicek holding their nerve in the closing stages to triumph.

“I think Romain and Sam played amazing all week,” said Dodig. “They beat unbelievable teams, some of the best teams in the world… They showed how good they can play and the [Match Tie-break] was really exciting and just really happy to win this one in an exciting match.”

Dodig and Krajicek have now won five tour-level titles as a team, with two coming on clay (Lyon 2022). The 38-year-old Dodig, who lost in the Monte-Carlo final in 2014 with Marcelo Melo, has now clinched six ATP Masters 1000 crowns. Sunday’s success is the 32-year-old Krajicek’s first at this level.

“We played great,” added Krajicek. “I mean, obviously being in a beautiful place like this, it’s hard not to feel good. I thought we played good tennis all week. Served well and played well on the big moments. Today, those guys came up with some good stuff in the second set and when there’s a tie-breaker it’s always a little bit of a coin flip. So you just never know and it came down to a few points there at the end. Luckily, we were able to get it to go our way today.”

The Croatian-American pair is up 13 spots to fourth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings following their title success.

Heavy hitting will likely be the order of the day as the 2023 Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters reaches its climax.

Andrey Rublev and Holger Rune, Top 10 stars with some of the biggest baseline weapons in the game, will attempt to hit through each other on Sunday to claim the trophy at the first clay-court ATP Masters 1000 event of the season. (Watch the final from 2:30pm CET/8:30am ET)

Both demonstrated their fighting qualities while rallying from a set down in rain-affected semi-finals on Saturday. Rublev completed a comeback against Taylor Fritz, while Rune clawed past Jannik Sinner in a thrilling evening encounter. Despite his physical exertions in that later match, the 19-year-old Dane needs no extra motivation as he chases his second ATP Masters 1000 crown.

“I expect for myself to push full. It’s the last push, it’s the last match of the tournament,” said Rune, who is the first teenager to reach the Monte-Carlo final since the then-19-year-old Rafael Nadal in 2006. “Obviously [Rublev] had three sets today as well, so he must be feeling the legs a little bit, I hope. I don’t know. You know, it’s going to be great.

“We played each other twice. It’s 1-1 head-to-head, so it’s going to be interesting, for sure.”

Those two tour-level meetings both took place in the past six months. Rublev was one of five Top 10 players that Rune beat during his stunning charge to the Rolex Paris Masters title last November, before the 12-time ATP Tour titlist exacted his revenge in dramatic fashion at January’s Australian Open.

Rublev saved two match points and then rallied from 0/5 in the deciding-set tie-break in a fourth-round classic in Melbourne. The 25-year-old will hope to stay similarly cool under pressure on the Monte-Carlo clay as he chases his maiden Masters 1000 crown.

Both players are chasing their first title of 2023, and their respective records for the year add further intrigue to a matchup that offers no clear favourite. Rublev is 17-8 on the season, a tally which includes a run to the Dubai final, while Rune is 17-7.

In terms of dealing with the scale of the occasion, however, the pair does have contrasting experiences to draw on. Rune raised his level spectacularly in his first Masters 1000 championship match to take down Novak Djokovic in Paris. Rublev, on the other hand, has lost out twice in finals at this level, including to Stefanos Tsitsipas in Monte-Carlo in 2021.

“[The key for me is] to not think,” said Rublev, when asked after beating Fritz whether he was thinking about his past final defeat to Tsitsipas. “Just to do the same thing like I did all the other days. Relax, do the treatment, have dinner, and that’s it. Not even thinking that I’m having something tomorrow.”

With both players so comfortable striking from the baseline, Rune’s ability to vary the pace of rallies with his drop shot could be crucial to deciding the outcome of the final. Rublev is aware of the Dane’s skill at disrupting his opponents from the pair’s previous matches, and the fifth seed views his ability to counter it as key to his chances on Court Rainier III.

“Holger is the guy who runs a lot, and he runs really well,” said Rublev on Saturday. “He reads the game really well. He’s very talented. He has a good touch. He doesn’t give you any rhythm, because as soon as he has a chance, he tries to do dropshots, or he tries to hit full power, [then] goes to the net.

“You need to take a risk to pass him, and at the net he’s really good. So you need really to pass these three, four shots to be able to give your rhythm and to dictate your style of the game.”

Rune’s tactics have certainly paid off this week. The Dane has lost only one set en route to the final and improved to 11-8 against Top 10 opponents with wins against Daniil Medvedev and Sinner in the Principality. He will step on court feeling confident against a player whom he trails by just 115 points in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings.

Whoever prevails, it will represent a breakthrough moment for the new Monte-Carlo champion. Rublev, a five-time champion at ATP 500 level, is competing for the biggest title of his career, while a victory for Rune would see the Dane rise to a career-high No. 6 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings on Monday.