{"id":107049,"date":"2026-04-21T15:08:37","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T14:08:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/?p=107049"},"modified":"2026-04-21T16:01:24","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T15:01:24","slug":"sinner-and-an-historic-challenge-in-madrid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/sinner-and-an-historic-challenge-in-madrid\/","title":{"rendered":"Sinner and an historic challenge in Madrid"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jannik Sinner\u2019s aura is unmistakable as he strides around the Mutua Madrid Open, where he is vying to make history. The Italian, whose sights are set on dominating the clay-court swing, is now seeking to notch up his fifth consecutive ATP Masters 1000 title in the Caja Magica, a feat never achieved since the category was established in 1990. However, he will have to do so at a tournament where he is yet to claim the title.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI feel pretty good\u201d, Sinner declared, fresh from his Monte Carlo victory and reclaiming the world No. 1 ranking. \u201cNow we\u2019re trying to prepare as well as we can. The plan is to play and compete as well as possible. I\u2019ll take it day by day. I have the challenge of Roland Garros in the back of my mind, where I\u2019ll try to arrive in optimal shape. I\u2019m here to give my best\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

Excellence has been a constant for Sinner in recent months, setting all-time records in the ATP Masters 1000s. The Italian has become untouchable, stringing together 37 sets in the top category of the ATP Tour, with trophies in Paris, Indian Wells, Miami and Monte Carlo as proof of his authority. Now, the challenge is to maintain that momentum in the Spanish capital, a place that turns tennis norms on their heads.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI think the tournament has very unique conditions\u201d, Sinner explained, referring to Madrid\u2019s altitude of over 500 metres above sea level. \u201cThere\u2019s altitude, sometimes there can be wind\u2026 it\u2019s not so easy to play. But I think any clay court can help me. I\u2019m trying to improve as a player and this tournament might be one of the most challenging. I\u2019ve never played well here. We\u2019ll see what I can do this year\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Italian is embarking on an edition of the event that does not include his biggest rivals. Both Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic, multiple Madrid champions, have confirmed their absence for 2026, leaving a different-looking draw for the world No. 1.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen they aren\u2019t in the draw, the situation is quite unique\u201d, Jannik added. \u201cWe\u2019ve shared many tournaments, but if I want to play Carlos, it will only be in the final. The road to a final is very long, and anything can happen there. At the same time, I always take it day by day, with many challenges ahead of me starting with my first match against a qualifier who will already have a couple of matches here. I have to try to figure out how to play on this surface and in Madrid\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Italian, who a year ago came within a point of lifting the French Open trophy, is looking to make Madrid a stage he can dominate. The quarter-finals in 2024, which he missed due to a hip injury, remain his best finish at a tournament he now aims to win.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe fans are very passionate at this tournament. It\u2019s important for us players; we need that connection with the crowd. I think I have a good relationship with Spain, partly thanks to Carlos. We have a good friendship off the court. People can sense that in a positive way. I\u2019m keen to get out there and see what happens\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jannik Sinner\u2019s aura is unmistakable as he strides around the Mutua Madrid Open, where he is vying to make history. The Italian, whose sights are set on dominating the clay-court swing, is now seeking to notch up his fifth consecutive ATP Masters 1000 title in the Caja Magica, a feat never achieved since the category […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":107025,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"mc4wp_mailchimp_campaign":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[824],"tags":[825,1067,831],"class_list":["post-107049","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-noticias-mutua-en","tag-atp-en-2","tag-jannik-sinner-en-2","tag-mutua-madrid-open-en-2"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107049","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=107049"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107049\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":107050,"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107049\/revisions\/107050"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/107025"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=107049"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=107049"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=107049"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}