Jodar's meteoric rise continues in Madrid
On Friday at the Madrid Open, world No.1 Jannik Sinner was spotted in the stands watching Spanish teenager Rafael Jodar take on fifth-seeded Alex De Minaur.
Jodar, a Madrid native, was facing a top-10 player for just the second time in his young career and he eased past De Minaur 6-3, 6-1 for his maiden victory against a top-10.
The 19-year-old’s meteoric rise has captured the attention of the entire tennis world and Jannik Sinner is no different – he was curious to get a closer look at Rafael Jodar to try and grasp how he rocketed up the rankings from 896 at the start of 2025 to his current career-high of 42 in the world.
“He's a very, very talented player. He was warming up today with Nicolai (Budkov Kjær), the Norwegian guy. And they're in a very interesting year, born 2006. There's Joao (Fonseca), Jodar, Nicolai, (Rei) Sakamoto, they're all very, very good players, and it's a very strong year.
“Jodar is a very, very clean hitter, very easy power. You can hear with the sound, when he touches the ball, and it's a good sound coming from the racquet.”
Coming from someone like Sinner, whose clean hitting produces a unique sound that is recognisable from miles away, that is undoubtedly the ultimate compliment.
“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,” Jodar told Cracket Racquets in an interview last year.
“Sinner has always been a role model for me. And of course from Spain, (Carlos) Alcaraz and (Rafael) Nadal, I have to say those two because they’ve been my idols since I was young.”
With idols like that, Jodar had ample inspiration that could explain how fast he’s developed over the last year and a half.
In the summer of 2024, he won the US Open junior title before joining the University of Virginia. He was named 2025 ITA National Rookie of the Year in his first season playing college tennis and earned All-American honours.
Following his impressive freshman campaign, Jodar began competing on the Challenger Tour, swiftly making an impact by lifting three Challenger trophies between August and October 2025.
He qualified for the Next Gen ATP Finals in December and took the decision to turn pro.
At the start of 2026, he flew to Melbourne to compete in the Grand Slam qualifying rounds for the first time. Jodar won three matches to advance to a maiden Grand Slam main draw then beat Sakamoto in five sets to notch his first main-draw victory at a major.
A certain pattern started to become obvious over the next three months. Whenever Jodar was presented with a first-time opportunity, he stepped up and grabbed it with both hands.
At his first Masters 1000 tournament in Miami, he qualified and made the third round.
At his first-ever tour-level tournament on clay in Marrakech, he won the whole thing to become an ATP titlist.
Now playing his first Masters 1000 on clay, Jodar posted a top-10 win over De Minaur, ousted Fonseca, and is through to the round of 16, where he takes on Vit Kopra on Tuesday for a spot in the quarter-finals.
He’ll rise to at least 34 in the world post-Madrid and could very much snag a seeding spot when he makes his Roland-Garros debut next month.
His progress has been truly staggering.
“I’m keeping my life simple. I’m the same person as I was one year ago, two years ago, and I will always be the same person, no matter the results,” Jodar told the Tennis Channel in Madrid.
“Yes, it came very fast. But I think the most important thing is that I’m surrounded by good people, especially my family and my dad. He's always giving me advice that I have to be the same, trying to stay calm during matches, trying to not overthink what is going on around the tournament and outside the court. And I think that’s one of the things that’s really helping me.”
There is an impressive statistic making the rounds on social media.
It lists the most wins by players in their first 25 tour-level matches.
Jodar tops that list with 17 victories from his first 25 tour-level contests. Behind him are Nadal and Fonseca with 15, and Alcaraz with 14.
Making such an immediate impact is certainly no mean feat.
The clash with Fonseca in the Madrid third round on Sunday night gave us a taste of what could potentially be a defining future rivalry in men’s tennis.
In front of a raucous capacity crowd at Manolo Santana Stadium, Jodar won 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-1 to reach the last 16 at a Masters 1000 tournament for the first time.
“It was very tough. Joao is always a very tough player. These matches are decided by very small details and points. I think I did a great job in those points, trying to play my game. I also want to congratulate him for the match and for the season,” said a gracious Jodar.
“He's doing an unbelievable job. I'm super happy with the win and on to the next one.”
On to the next one. Jodar is not messing around.
ROLAND-GARROS
18 May - 7 June 2026
