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The ATP tour will head to the capital city of Spain for the 22nd edition of the Madrid Open, which will take place from April 23 to May 5, 2024.
World No. 1 Novak Djokovic announced his withdrawal from the tournament a few days ago. He'll next return to action at the Italian Open. Jannik Sinner leads the pack as the top seed, followed by defending champion Carlos Alcaraz.
Rafael Nadal, meanwhile, will continue his comeback at the Madrid Open. He didn't make a deep run upon his return to the tour at the Barcelona Open, where he lost in the second round. However, he'll be keen to garner some momentum as the French Open draws closer.
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With most of the big names all gathered here, the Madrid Open promises an exciting two weeks' worth of action. On that note, here are all the relevant details regarding the tournament:
What is the Madrid Open?
The tournament came into existence in 2002 as an indoor hardcourt event during the fall. It remained that way until the 2008 edition. It was re-envisaged in a new avatar the following year and moved to a new slot on the ATP calendar.
The tournament has been held on clay since 2009 and usually has a late-April start. It follows the Monte-Carlo Masters as the second clay Masters 1000 tournament on the ATP tour.
Since its inception, the Madrid Open has always been classified as a Masters tournament. It was initially only a men's event but opened its doors to the WTA tour in 2009 and became a combined event.
Rafael Nadal holds the record for most titles at the venue with five, followed by Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer with three apiece. The Spaniard has also reached the most finals here, with eight trips to the championship round so far.
Venue
The Madrid Open will take place at La Caja Magica in Madrid, Spain.
Men's Draw and Players
All seeded players have received a bye into the second round. Jannik Sinner is the top seed and headlines the top half of the draw. He's got a smooth ride until the quarterfinals, where he could face the in-form Casper Ruud.
Rafael Nadal is also in the top half of the draw. He'll start off against Darwin Blanch and could once again meet Alex de Minaur in the second round, who beat him at the Barcelona Open. Stefanos Tsitsipas is also in the Spaniard's section and the two could lock horns in the fourth round.
Two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz leads the bottom half of the draw. He got a relatively easy draw, with Andrey Rublev, his projected quarterfinal opponent, being in a major slump at the moment.
Either Alexander Zverev or Hubert Hurkacz are most likely to be Alcaraz's semifinal opponents. Taylor Fritz, Tommy Paul and Holger Rune are some of the other notable names in the bottom half of the draw.
The complete men's draw can be found here.
Schedule
The qualifying rounds are already underway. The men's main-draw action will begin on April 24. The first three rounds last two days each. All fourth-round matches will be contested on Tuesday, April 30.
The quarterfinals will be held on Wednesday and Thursday, May 1 and 2. The semifinals will take place on Friday, May 3. The men's doubles final will be played on Saturday, May 4, while the men's singles final will be held on Sunday, May 5, at 6:30 p.m. local time.
Prize Money and Ranking Points
The total prize money for this year's edition of the Madrid Open is €7,877,020. The singles champion will receive $963,225 along with 1000 ranking points.
Here's a complete breakdown of the prize money and ranking points:
Where to watch
Viewers from the following countries can keep track of the happenings at the Madrid Open on the respective channels and sites:
USA - Tennis Channel
UK - Sky Sports
Australia - beIN Sports
Canada - TSN
India - Sony Sports
For more information regarding the broadcast of matches, click here.
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