Since the inception of the Madrid Open in 2001, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Andy Murray are among the stars who have tried and failed to defend the title, with five-time champion Nadal the only man to claim back-to-back victories in the Spanish capital. 

But that changed on Sunday as Alcaraz retained the crown he won last year against Alexander Zverev with a 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 win over another German, lucky loser Jan-Lennard Struff, to equal the landmark set by his compatriot nine years ago. With his fourth tournament victory of the season, the 20-year-old also matched another of Nadal’s milestones, becoming the youngest man to defend a Masters 1000 title since the 22-time grand slam champion did it in Monte Carlo and Rome in 2006.

Having also mounted a successful title defence in Barcelona a fortnight ago, Alcaraz will overtake Djokovic at the top of the rankings next week in Rome, where he will attempt to win the tournament on his debut. The last man to do it? Nadal. Should he pull it off, Alcaraz might as well stick a bull logo on his shirt and be done with it. 

“I have never played in Rome,” said Alcaraz, who skipped the event last year to rest after his exploits in Madrid. “I really want to play there. I missed last year. 

“This is a tournament that I looking for since I was kid. I don’t know how it’s going to be, I don’t know the feelings over there, but for sure I’m going to enjoy that tournament.”

With Nadal still absent as he continues his recovery from the hip injury he suffered at the Australian Open, and a lingering question mark over Djokovic’s fitness after the elbow problem that forced him to pull out of Madrid, Alcaraz may well enjoy himself. He will arrive in Rome as the title favourite and, barring a dominant performance from Djokovic, who has been practising in Marbella without the protective sleeve he wore on his elbow in Monte Carlo and Banja Luka, he will be similarly fancied by the oddsmakers in Paris.

It was a similar story last year, of course, when wins over Nadal, Djokovic and Zverev across three consecutive days in Madrid led to predictions of Alcaraz claiming a maiden grand slam title in Paris, only for Zverev to ambush the Murcian in the quarter-finals. But as Alcaraz’s performance against Struff demonstrated, the difference this time around is that he is better equipped to win on those rare days when aspects of his game are misfiring, even against an opponent playing at the height of his ability.

In the biggest match of his career, Struff, the world No 65, certainly did that. The error-strewn service game with which he began was quickly exposed as a red herring, the 33-year-producing some venomous returns as he forced Alcaraz to battle for nine minutes to hold his opening service game. Daniela Hantuchova, the former world No 5 turned TV pundit, suggested that the heavily watered court represented an attempt by the organisers to slow down the conditions, nullifying the 6ft 4in Struff’s huge serve and favouring the home favourite. 

If that was the case, however, the stratagem backfired, neutralising the pace of Alcaraz’s delivery and allowing Struff to maintain an aggressive return position on the baseline. Two games later, the German blasted a return winner to break back to love. Alcaraz began to look unsettled, gesturing in frustration to his box before switching to a different racket. Tension was very much the order of the afternoon.

Alcaraz reasserted his authority, forcing a break in the seventh game as Struff double-faulted after another lengthy struggle on serve. But the German’s bold hitting and willingness to rush the net, even behind his second serve, continued to cause the Spaniard all manner of problems. He was almost undone by a trio of forehand errors as he served for the set, recovering from 0-40 with some incisive serving and a brilliant topspin lob. Alcaraz sealed the opener with a thunderbolt forehand, but some aggressive returning from Struff secured an early break in the second, and from there the lower-ranked man seized control to level the contest.

With a stunned silence descending on the Caja Mágica and Alcaraz’s errors mounting, the momentum was with Struff as they went into the decider. History both recent and distant was with him. Having defeated Alcaraz two years ago at Roland Garros – and pushed him to a fifth set at Wimbledon last summer in their only other previous meeting – he would be unlikely to falter at the prospect of victory. Moreover, he had gone the distance in five consecutive matches en route to the final and not been broken once in a deciding set. 

So there was real danger for Alcaraz as he faced a break point in the third game. Struff, though, failed to grasp the nettle, waiting for his opponent to miss only to send a backhand long himself. Alcaraz had seen enough. Orchestrating the crowd into a paroxysm of fervour, the US Open champion broke in the next game, pulling off a signature drop shot winner before prising a volleying error from Struff. He would not be caught. 

Even in defeat, though, this was a tournament that belonged to Struff. His improbable run to the final, after losing in qualifying to Aslan Karatsev – a defeat he avenged in the last four – has been the stuff of fairytales. He will now rise to a career-high ranking of 28 and, if he can maintain this level, he is more than capable of a deep run at Roland Garros or Wimbledon, where he was a quarter-finalist five years ago.

“It’s been an incredible journey from lucky loser to be in the final,” said Struff. “It gives me a lot of push for the next weeks and months. It was a best-career achievement so far.

“I think it will sink in [over] the next [few] days.”

As for Alcaraz, he knew he had been in a fight.

“I knew he was going to play aggressive, serve and volley, trying to attack my serve,” said the Spaniard, whose title defence started in similarly testing style against Finland’s Emil Ruusuvuori last week. “It was tough for me.”

Tougher tests yet lie ahead. The suspicion is that Alcaraz will be ready for all of them.

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Aryna Sabalenka is in no doubt about the nature of the opportunity that lies before her as she prepares to take on Iga Swiatek in a clay-court final for the second time in two weeks at the Caja Mágica.

“I really want to have this revenge,” said Sabalenka, the Belarusian world No 2, of the prospect of turning the tables on Swiatek, who defeated her in straight sets in the final of the Stuttgart Open a fortnight ago. 

“I think I would just play with more passion. I wouldn’t rush things. I would just go one more time, try better, and fight for this title.”

Trying better has become something of a mantra for the 25-year-old, whose journey from self-proclaimed Queen of Double Faults to Australian Open champion has been well documented. Sabalenka believes that the improvements she has made to her serve – an achilles heel last season, the bedrock of two titles and five final appearances this season – can give her a vital edge in the Spanish capital, where the quick conditions lend extra edge to a delivery that regularly touches speeds in the region of 120mph. 

“I would say that before our first matches last season when I didn’t feel my best, it was really tough to play against her because I didn’t have so many weapons,” said Sabalenka, who was defeated by Swiatek in Qatar, Stuttgart, Rome and New York last year before finally getting the better of the Pole at the season-ending WTA Finals. 

“I had my character, and that’s it. Later, when I fixed my serve, I understood that actually I can play well against her, I can beat her. Right now, it’s a different mentality. Going into this match you just kind of prepare yourself for a tough battle, and whatever happens on court, it’s not really bothering you. You’re focused, you’re ready for that, and you’re really enjoying these battles.”

A stony-faced Sabalenka gave little appearance of having enjoyed her 6-3, 6-4 loss in Stuttgart last month, briefly leaving the court to sit with her team before the trophy presentation. Yet her tactics were sound, the Belarusian seeking to draw Swiatek wide with clever angles and changes of pace before landing the coup de grâce. The problem for Sabalenka, as Swiatek showcased her extraordinary movement and defensive skills, was patience rather than planning – a lesson that, she says, has been learned.

“In Stuttgart I was like going crazy when I had [a] slower shot or shorter shot or approach shot. I was just going crazy. I was rushing things. I tried to go for winners. This time I’ll just play with more passion, and I’ll just wait for a better shot to finish the point.”

If Sabalenka is indeed to gain vengeance, she will no doubt need to play at the very top of her game. While Swiatek has shown signs of vulnerability this season, losing to Elena Rybakina at the Australian Open and in Indian Wells, and to Barbora Krejcikova in the final of Dubai, the world No 1 has been back to her best with her beloved clay underfoot. Against Sabalenka, she will be gunning for her 10th straight win on the surface and 47th in 50 matches since the first of her two French Open victories in 2020. She will meet Saturday’s challenge head on.

“It’s always an exciting and really intense match, so I’m also looking forward [to it],” said Swiatek. “Playing against Aryna, you have to be 100% ready.”

In an age more notable for anodyne soundbites than fighting talk, Sabalenka’s openness about wanting to get her own back is refreshing. Yet different perspectives are available. Just ask Jan-Lennard Struff, beaten in qualifying by Russia’s Aslan Karatsev only to secure a place in the main draw as a lucky loser. Facing Karatsev for a second time with a place in a first Masters 1000 final at stake for both men, Struff, a 33-year-old German ranked 65 in the world, saw it as a second chance. From a set down, he took embraced the opportunity, outlasting the Russian 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 to continue what has been a fairytale run.

“Very, very happy to get a second chance,” said Struff, who will face Carlos Alcaraz, the top seed and defending champion, in Sunday’s final. “I never would have expected this one, to be in the finals after being a lucky loser.”

So is there a moral to this tale of the unexpected?

“It’s just if you have a second chance, try to go for it,” said Struff. “Just that you shouldn’t give up and [you should] try again always.”

Whether they think of it as vengeance or merely a second chance, both Sabalenka and Struff will be aiming for the same outcome this weekend.

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Nadal, who has been sidelined by injury since tearing his psoas muscle during a defeat to Mackenzie McDonald at the Australian Open in January, said in a statement on social media that although his condition has improved in recent days, he is not yet ready to return to the match court. 

The 36-year-old, who first won at Roland Garros on his debut in 2005 and has not missed an edition of the tournament since, now faces the unprecedented prospect of contesting the tournament without a competitive clay-court match under his belt – if he makes it all. 

“I am very sorry to announce that I will not be able to be in Rome,” wrote the Spaniard, who has won 10 titles in the Italian capital. 

“You all know how much it hurts me to miss another of the tournaments that has been so important to me, both professionally and personally, because of all the affection and support of the Italian fans. 

“Despite having noticed an improvement in the last few days, it has been many months since I’ve been able to train at a high level and the adaptation process takes time. All that is left for me to do is accept it and keep working.”

When Nadal suffered the injury in mid-January, it seemed unimaginable he would find himself in this position almost four months later. The initial prognosis suggested he would be out for up to eight weeks, leaving him touch and go for the sunshine swing of Indian Wells and Miami, but almost certain to return in time for the start of the European clay-court season. Instead, he has been forced to pull out of events in Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Madrid and now Rome. In the past, all have been key staging posts for Nadal on the road to glory in Paris. 

Mention of an improvement in his condition is encouraging, given that Nadal had previously said his hip was not healing as expected. But even if the 22-time grand slam champions able to mount a title defence at Roland Garros, the effects of his inactivity could be compounded by his recent drop in the rankings. Currently 14th, he could face the likes of Novak Djokovic or Carlos Alcaraz as early as round four.

Meanwhile Alcaraz, the world No 2, further underlined his credentials as the heir apparent to Nadal with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Croatia’s Borna Coric at the Madrid Open. The Spaniard, who was presented with a cake in honour of his 20th birthday afterwards, now stands within one win of becoming the first man since Nadal to successfully defend the Madrid title.

“It means a lot to me, playing a final again here in Madrid,” said Alcaraz, who defeated Nadal and Djokovic on the way to last year’s title win. “It’s such a special place for me and I have great memories since I came here to play [as an] under-12. Of course, last year was amazing.

“Turning 20 like that is special, so I will enjoy the final here and of course I will try to make all of Spain happy.”

To do so, he will need to find a way past Jan-Lennard Struff, the German world No 65, who fought back from a set down to avenge his qualifying defeat to Russia’s Aslan Karatsev. Struff, whose path to a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory was eased as Karatsev laboured with a thigh injury in the closing stages, becomes the first lucky loser to reach a Masters 1000 final.

“It’s an incredible journey,” said Struff. “I wouldn’t have thought about this when I lost the match against Aslan in qualies. It just feels incredible, it’s my second final on the ATP Tour and it’s just amazing it’s at a Masters.”

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