Here at the Mutua Madrid Open, we\u2019ve been having\u00a0 some interesting conversations with ChatGPT, asking for its favourites for the tournament, getting it to analyse as many factors as possible (draw, current form, recent performances, past edition, etc.). With a touch of humour, of course, the AI chatbot has presented us with its predictions for this year\u2019s event. Below are the artificial intelligence forecasts for the next two weeks. As you would expect, the answer we received was written in first person. Make of it what you will:<\/p>\n
“I\u2019ve been asked to play fortune teller, and of course, I\u2019ve accepted. Not out of overconfidence, but because there\u2019s always time to make a mistake in style. The 2026 Mutua Madrid Open is here, and the Caja Magica has once again become that marvellous laboratory where the clay behaves like clay\u2026 but not entirely. The ball flies faster, the serve inflicts more damage, the favourites have less room to yawn, and the underdogs find cracks through which to slip into history.<\/p>\n
So here\u2019s my prediction. I won\u2019t promise absolute scientific rigour, although there are some data: previous results in Madrid, clay performance, form, tactical profile, and that unacademic but necessary thing called intuition. If I get it right, you can call me the official oracle of the Caja Magica. If I\u2019m wrong, I\u2019ll note for the record that in tennis, the blame always lies with the draw, the wind, the altitude, or an untimely net cord.<\/p>\n
That said: get your notebooks ready, prepare your screenshots, and come laugh at me in two weeks. Here are my champions, finalists, semi-finalists and an upset or two likely to turn up unannounced”.<\/p>\n
Champion: Jannik Sinner<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not the most romantic pick, but certainly the most solid. In a Madrid without Alcaraz or Djokovic, Sinner has a huge opportunity. The altitude favours his flat shots, his first strike after serve, and his ability to rush an opponent. Although he comes off a win in Monte Carlo, the question is whether his clay tennis commands the same authority as on hard courts, but Madrid is the \u2018hardest\u2019 clay of the calendar. You don\u2019t need to be Kuerten here; you need to hit cleanly, take control early and not give away space.<\/p>\n
Finalist: Alexander Zverev<\/p>\n
Madrid suits him like a tailor-made suit. He\u2019s won here before, the altitude boosts his serve, and his backhand withstands pressure very well. His emotional management in long matches doesn\u2019t always win me over, but in these conditions, he has a clear competitive path as long as he doesn\u2019t get lost in his own head.<\/p>\n
Semi-finalists: Jannik Sinner, Lorenzo Musetti, Casper Ruud and Alexander Zverev<\/p>\n
Musetti is my aesthetic choice: if he has a fine week, his backhand, changes of height, and touch can do a lot of damage. He\u2019s not at his best after injury, but he must be considered, no matter what. Ruud, meanwhile, is the reigning champion: he won Madrid 2025 against Jack Draper, and the tournament recalled that since 2020 he\u2019s had the most wins, finals and titles on clay.<\/p>\n
Possible upsets in the men\u2019s:<\/p>\n
Joao Fonseca, because in Madrid the ball flies off his racket and he\u2019s not afraid of anyone;\u00a0Arthur Fils, if he strings together first serves and forehands;\u00a0Alejandro Davidovich, because at home and amidst chaos he can always catch fire; and\u00a0Hubert Hurkacz, who isn\u2019t a clay specialist, but in Madrid his serve can turn any match into a toss of a coin.<\/p>\n
My imaginary draw would be:<\/p>\n
Sinner beats Musetti in the semi-finals. Zverev beats Ruud. Sinner beats Zverev in the final.<\/p>\n
My women\u2019s prediction<\/p>\n
Champion: Aryna Sabalenka<\/p>\n
Here I\u2019m backing the queen of the castle. Sabalenka has won Madrid in\u00a02021, 2023 and 2025, and last year she beat Coco Gauff in the final. The WTA also includes her among the historic multi-champions of the tournament. In Madrid, her power doesn\u2019t get as unruly as it does elsewhere on clay: it\u2019s turned into an advantage. If she\u2019s healthy and confident, every forehand seems to come with an express delivery stamp.<\/p>\n
Finalist: Elena Rybakina<\/p>\n
In terms of conditions, she\u2019s probably Sabalenka\u2019s most dangerous rival. Serve, first strike, little need to build twenty-shot rallies and a ball that, at altitude, flies through the court. It\u2019s not always easy to gauge her fitness, but if she arrives intact for the second week, she has championship-level tennis.<\/p>\n
Semi-finalists: Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff and Elena Rybakina<\/p>\n
Swiatek always deserves to be in the clay conversation, but Madrid isn\u2019t her most natural venue; the ball flies faster, play is faster, and big hitters force her to rush. Still, her competitive base level is very high. Gauff, finalist in 2025, has a draw to grow into and a tremendous ability to survive tough matches.<\/p>\n
Possible upsets in the women\u2019s:<\/p>\n
Mirra Andreeva, because she already plays with maturity beyond her years and on clay can mix rhythm, defence and audacity;\u00a0Naomi Osaka, because if her serve is firing in Madrid she doesn\u2019t need anyone\u2019s permission;\u00a0Diana Shnaider, who\u2019s already knocked out Bouzas and has a tricky left-handed game; and\u00a0Cristina Bucsa, not as champion, but certainly capable of causing a serious upset if she finds momentum. Bucsa arrives as a Spanish seed and is fresh off winning M\u00e9rida, though Madrid has never been her most fruitful tournament until now.<\/p>\n
My imaginary draw would be:<\/p>\n
Sabalenka beats Swiatek in the semi-finals. Rybakina beats Gauff. Sabalenka beats Rybakina in the final.<\/p>\n
Crystal ball summary<\/strong><\/p>\n ATP<\/strong><\/p>\n Champion:<\/strong>\u00a0Jannik Sinner<\/p>\n Finalist:<\/strong>\u00a0Alexander Zverev<\/p>\n Semi-finalists<\/strong>:\u00a0Sinner, Musetti, Ruud, Zverev<\/p>\n Dark horses:\u00a0<\/strong>Fonseca, Fils, Davidovich, Hurkacz<\/p>\n WTA<\/strong><\/p>\n Champion:<\/strong>\u00a0Aryna Sabalenka<\/p>\n Finalist:\u00a0<\/strong>Elena Rybakina<\/p>\n Semi-finalists:<\/strong>\u00a0Sabalenka, Swiatek, Gauff, Rybakina<\/p>\n Dark horses:<\/strong>\u00a0Andreeva, Osaka, Shnaider, Bucsa<\/p>\n My safest bet is\u00a0Sabalenka as champion\u00a0. My least risky bet is\u00a0Sinner as champion\u00a0. My indulgence would be a big week from\u00a0Musetti\u00a0or\u00a0Andreeva.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Here at the Mutua Madrid Open, we\u2019ve been having\u00a0 some interesting conversations with ChatGPT, asking for its favourites for the tournament, getting it to analyse as many factors as possible (draw, current form, recent performances, past edition, etc.). With a touch of humour, of course, the AI chatbot has presented us with its predictions for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":105994,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"mc4wp_mailchimp_campaign":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[838,837,843],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-107572","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-noticias-tenis-masculino-en","category-noticias-tenis-en","category-noticias-tenis-femenino-en"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107572","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\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=107572"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107572\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":107580,"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107572\/revisions\/107580"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/105994"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=107572"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=107572"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mutuamadridopen.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=107572"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}