Jannik Sinner won’t be facing Carlos Alcaraz at the Madrid Open this year due to the Spaniard’s injury layoff. But the Spanish crowd has a rising star to make up for Alcaraz’s absence, and he is facing the World No. 1 in the quarterfinal.
Rafael Jódar, aged 19, is enjoying a breakthrough run at his home tournament. The teenager beat Jesper De Jong, fifth seed Alex de Minaur, 27th seed João Fonseca, and Vit Kopřiva to set up a final-eight clash with Sinner.
Jannik Sinner Thrilled To Face Rafael Jódar at Madrid Open
Ahead of their clash, Sinner shared his thoughts on the young talent, with words that have in fact often been used to describe the Italian himself.
“Jódar is a very, very clean hitter; very easy power. You can hear with the sound, when he touches, it’s a good sound coming from the racket and he’s very, very talented,” he said in one of his press conferences.
“I like the mentality; he’s quite calm. I don’t know him personally, but he seems very humble,” he added.
In the clash of 19-year-olds, Jódar beat Fonseca 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-1 in the third round. It was his 17th win on tour in 25 career matches played. The elite win-loss record in the first 25 matches saw him surpass icons, including Sinner, Alcaraz, Djokovic, Nadal, and Federer.
“I watched the whole match on TV in the hotel. Very high-level match. It’s not going to be the only time we face each other; that’s my feeling,” Sinner said about his upcoming opponent.
“It would be good to face him before bigger tournaments coming up,” he added, acknowledging Jódar’s acquaintance with Madrid Open conditions. “Very unique conditions; he’s from Madrid, so he’s very used to these conditions here. At the same time, I can have good feedback. Very exciting new player.”
Jódar, meanwhile, has based his game off the Italian. “I’ve watched a lot of Sinner. I think his game is pretty similar to mine, and I see some things in my game that I can reach… that level. Sinner has always been like a role model,” he told Cracked Racquets during his title run at Lincoln Challenger.
Ahead of the quarterfinal in Madrid, the 19-year-old said in Spanish, “I’m going point by point, and there is still a long way to go not to ask ourselves that question (if I can win), but well, I know that if I do things right and that if I have a good mentality and play good tennis throughout the match, maybe this can be considered.”
“In the end I believe that things have to be done very well, and we must continue to do what I have been doing so far because all rivals are tough here. Everyone plays well,” he added.
MORE: Jannik Sinner vs Rafael Jódar Preview: Head-to-Head, Prediction for Madrid Open 2026
Sinner is chasing his fifth consecutive Masters 1000 title, having won the Paris Masters in 2025; the Indian Wells Open, the Miami Open, and the Monte-Carlo Masters in 2026. Meanwhile, his young opponent is making his Masters 1000 quarterfinal debut after a string of strong results.
