The ATP Tour heads to opposite sides of Europe this week for a clay-court doubleheader in Barcelona and Belgrade.
Stefanos Tsitsipas, Casper Ruud, Felix Auger-Aliassime headline a stacked field at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, where #NextGenATP sensation Carlos Alcaraz looks to impress his home fans at the ATP 500 event.
World No. 1 Novak Djokovic can also count on strong home support as he chases his first crown of the year at the Serbia Open in Belgrade, an ATP 250 event. Dominic Thiem returns to tour-level action in Belgrade after 10 months out with a wrist injury.
ATPTour.com looks ahead at five things to watch at each event.
View Draws: Barcelona | Belgrade
FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN BARCELONA
1) Tsitsipas’ Unfinished Business: Tsitsipas broke his trophy duck for 2022 by successfully defending his title at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters on Sunday. The Greek will hope that momentum can carry him to a maiden title in Catalunya.
Tsitsipas reached the final twice before in Barcelona, losing against Rafael Nadal on both occasions. The top seed begins his bid to go one better this year against Pedro Martinez or Ilya Ivashka.
2) Home Fans Await Alcaraz: Spain’s teenage sensation is seeded fifth as he prepares to play in his home country for the first time since becoming an ATP Masters 1000 champion at the Miami Open presented by Itau in early April.
The 18-year-old has hit a series of milestones this year including his Miami breakthrough, his maiden ATP 500 crown in Rio de Janeiro and breaking into the Top 20 of the ATP Rankings for the first time. Alcaraz will try to earn his first Barcelona match win against South Korean Soonwoo Kwon or Frenchman Benoit Paire.
3) Felix Seeks First Clay Title: Auger-Aliassime made a sparkling start to the season when he helped Canada to the ATP Cup title, reached the Australian Open quarter-finals and then lifted his first ATP Tour trophy in Rotterdam. Will the 21-year-old claim his maiden tour-level clay-court crown this week in Barcelona? Last year, he reached the quarter-finals at the ATP 500 before falling to Tsitsipas. A potential opening clash with #NextGenATP American Sebastian Korda could be a tough early test for the third seed, who will try to bounce back from an opening-round loss in Monte Carlo.
4) Ruud & Schwartzman Pose Clay-Court Threat: Second seed Ruud has established himself as one of the Tour’s leading contenders on clay since his previous appearance in Barcelona in 2017. The Norwegian comes in off the back of a disappointing third-round exit in Monte Carlo, but still holds a 14-5 record for the year. He already has a title on the red dirt in 2022, having clinched a seventh tour-level title in Buenos Aires in February.
Diego Schwartzman lost one of the matches of the year in Monte Carlo, a topsy-turvy quarter-final against eventual champion Tsitsipas. The sixth-seeded Argentine seeks to bouce back at an event where he reached the last eight in 2021 as he hunts his first title of the season.
5) Ram/Salisbury Lead Doubles Field: Top-ranked pairing Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury clinched a maiden tour-level title together on clay in Monte Carlo and the American-British duo seeks to back up that run with a strong showing in Barcelona, where they fell at the semi-finals in 2021. They face a tough opening clash against home favourites and 2018 champions Feliciano Lopez and Marc Lopez. Monte Carlo finalists Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah, the fourth seeds, will chase a third consecutive title at the event.
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FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN BELGRADE1) Djokovic Hunts Home Success: World No. 1 Djokovic will hope home support can power him to his first title of 2022 at the Novak Tennis Center. Djokovic is a two-time champion at the Serbia Open, having triumphed in 2009 and 2011, and also lifted the trophy in Belgrade in 2021, when there was an ATP 250 on a single-year licence.
The 34-year-old will try to play into form after losing in the second round in Monte Carlo against eventual finalist Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. The Serbian's opening opponent will be a countryman: wild card Hamad Medjedovic or Laslo Djere.
2) Thiem Returns To Tour: Former World No. 3 Thiem returns to play an ATP Tour event for the first time since being sidelined with a wrist injury in June 2021.
The Austrian lost on his competitive return at an ATP Challenger Tour event in Marbella, Spain, in late March and takes his comeback to another level with his Belgrade debut. Thiem is a two-time Roland Garros finalist and the 28-year-old will hope to use his clay-court experience to his advantage in his opener against Australian John Millman. If Thiem and Djokovic make it to the quarter-finals, they will meet in a blockbuster for a place in the last four.
3) Rublev Makes Belgrade Debut: Andrey Rublev’s strong start to 2022 included back-to-back titles in Marseille and Dubai in February. Will the 24-year-old add his third title of the season this week in Serbia on his tournament debut? A two-time tour-level titlist on clay, Rublev will look to hit the ground running in an opening clash with Henri Laaksonen or a qualifier.
4) Rune Rise To Continue?: The excitement around #NextGenATP Dane Holger Rune cranked up a notch in Monte Carlo as the 18-year-old defeated 2021 Nitto ATP Finals alternate Aslan Karatsev before falling to Casper Ruud in two tight sets. Rune is chasing a second consecutive appearance at the Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals.
The 18-year-old could prove a handful for fifth seed Cristian Garin in the first round. Five-time ATP Tour titlist Garin will hope his semi-final run in Houston two weeks ago will serve as the start of a strong stretch on the clay.
5) Mektic/Pavic Top Seeds: Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic’s hunt for a first title since the Tokyo Olympics in July takes them to the Belgrade event for the first time, with the top-seeded Croatians looking to bounce back after their title defence in Monte Carlo ended at the quarter-final stage.
Italian duo Simone Bolelli and Fabio Fognini are the second seeds in Serbia, while third seeds Matthew Ebden and Max Purcell return to the court for the first time since the Australian pair clinched its maiden ATP Tour title in Houston two weeks ago.
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