CARLOS Alcaraz gets another chance to defend a title at home in Spain, and move closer to regaining the No. 1 ranking. After winning in Barcelona for a second year in a row last week, the 19-year-old Alcaraz stayed in Spain to try to repeat as Madrid Open champion and practically guarantee a return to the top of the rankings.
Daniil Medvedev will be his top challenger at the clay-court tournament after the withdrawals of Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic because of injuries. Defending women’s champion Ons Jabeur also won’t play in Madrid this year because of an injury.
The second-ranked Alcaraz is chasing Djokovic for the No. 1 spot after having traded the top ranking with him three times this season. If he wins the title in Madrid, Alcaraz would only need to play one match in Rome to be back at No. 1.
The Spaniard can also get
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