Nadal Not Playing So Alcaraz Leads Barcelona Field; Tsitsipas, Ruud, Sinner In Hunt

With Rafael Nadal still recovering from an ailing hip, Carlos Alcaraz hopes to make his European clay debut. The teen who turns 20 in a few weeks is the top seed and defending champion at a loaded Barcelona event which also includes Stefanos Tsitsipas, Casper Ruud and Jannik Sinner in the field of 48.

“We’ll be thinking about everything, apart from defending the title,” Alcaraz told the ATP. “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.”

Here are the top seeds: 1 Carlos Alcaraz, 2 Stefanos Tsitsipas, 3 Casper Ruud, 4 Jannik Sinner, 5 Frances Tiafoe, 6 Karen Khachanov, 7 Cameron Norrie, 8 Alex De Minaur, 9 Lorenzo Musetti, 10 Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, 11 Grigor Dimitrov, 12 Daniel Evans, 13 Roberto Bautista Agut, 14 Denis Shapovalov, 15 Francisco Cerundolo, 16 Yoshihito Nishioka.

No. 1 Alcaraz is projected to meet 5 Tiafoe in the quarters, No. 3 Ruud – 6 Khachanov, No. 7 Norrie – 4 Sinner, and 8 seed De Minaur – 2 Tsitsipas in the bottom quarter.

The semifinals could see Carlos Alcaraz-Casper Ruud and Jannik Sinner-Stefanos Tsitsipas.

CARLOS ALCARAZ QUARTER
Seeds: 1 Alcaraz, 5 Tiafoe, 10 Davidovich Fokina, 13 Bautista Agut,
Floaters: Ruusuvuori, Bublik, Etcheverry
Notable openers: Tomas Martin Etcheverry-Pablo Andujar, Alexander Bublik-Emil Ruusuvuori
Notes: It should be smooth sailing for Ruud out to the quarters. Tiafoe just won a clay title in Houston and has been in form, so a quarterfinal collision between those two would be entertaining.

CASPER RUUD QUARTER
Seeds: 3 Ruud, 6 Khachanov, 12 Evans, 15 Cerundolo
Floaters: Shelton, McDonald, Jarry, Verdasco
Notable openers: Mackenzie Mcdonald-Ben Shelton
Note: After an Estoril title, Casper Ruud missed the mark in Monte Carlo. But the Norwegian will hope to rebound in Spain. He could face rising star Ben Shelton in his opener with the dangerous Cerudolo and Khachanov lurking. Verdasco is a former champion.

JANNIK SINNER QUARTER
Seeds: 4 Sinner, 7 Norrie, 9 Musetti, 16 Nishioka
Floaters: Schwartzman, Wu, Goffin
Notable openers: Diego Schwartzman-Yibing Wu
Notes: Following a third straight Masters semifinal, Sinner drops down a level where he’ll be among the favorites. The road won’t be easy with Schwartzman a potential opener and then Musetti or Norrie in the quarters. The Italian Musetti comes in off a huge upset over Novak Djokovic.

STEFANOS TSITSIPAS QUARTER
Seeds: 2 Tsitsipas, 8 De Minaur, 11 Dimitrov, 14 Shapovalov
Floaters: Ramos Vinolas, Cachin
Notes: Two-time runner up Tsitsipas will hope to shake a poor result in Monte Carlo with a better run in Spain. And the draw is in his favor!.

Former champions: Alcaraz, Verdasco,
Former finalists: Andujar, Tsitsipas(2),

Last year, (5) Carlos Alcaraz defeated (8) Pablo Carreno Busta 6-3, 6-2.

LAST 10 BARCELONA CHAMPIONS/FINALS
2022 Carlos Alcaraz d Pablo Carreno Busta 6-3, 6-2
2021 Rafael Nadal d Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 6-7(6),, 7-5
2019 Dominic Thiem d Daniil Medvedev 6-4 6-0
2018 Rafael Nadal d Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-2, 6-1
2017 Rafael Nadal d Dominic Thiem 6-4, 6-1
2016 Rafael Nadal d Kei Nishikori 6-4, 7-5
2015 Kei Nishikori d Pablo Andujar 6-4, 6-4
2014 Kei Nishikori d Santiago Giraldo 6-2, 6-2
2013 Rafael Nadal d Nicolas Almagro 6-4, 6-3
2012 Rafael Nadal d David Ferrer 7-6(1), 7-5

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