What's Happening This Week in the Tennis World?

Hi loves,

This week in the world of tennis, the clay court swing really gets underway, with both WTA and ATP tournaments taking place all over Europe.  Even though the very prestigious Monte-Carlo Masters took place last week, it is a tournament with a very small field so it doesn't really feel as though the clay season properly starts until this week.

Here is a breakdown of what is happening, where it’s happening and who is going to be where.

Porsche Tennis Grand Prix STUTTGART, GERMANY

Apr 14 - Apr 21, 2025

WTA 500

The world’s top 4 will be here this week; Sabalenka, Swiatek, Pegula and Gauff all take to the court in their first red clay court matches of the season. Pegula played and lifted the title on the green clay of Charleston a couple of weeks ago, so keep an eye on whether she can translate her good form from the green to red clay this week as she makes her return to the US women's number 1 spot.

Last year’s champion Elena Rybakina is a notable absentee, making the decision to instead help Kazakhstan in the qualifiers for the Billie Jean King Cup - and a good decision it seems to be due to them successfully qualifying. This will however significantly affect her rankings, with her due to lose her 500 ranking points from last year and leave the world’s top 10 for the first time since January 2023.

Racket Report pick for the title: Iga Swiatek

Iga Swiatek playing in Stuttgart in 2024

Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell BARCELONA, SPAIN

Apr 14 - Apr 20, 2025

ATP 500

Two-time champion Carlos Alcaraz graces the courts of Barcelona this week straight off his triumph in Monte-Carlo (or should I say, Monte-CARLOS). Struggling with form in recent months, this win allows for a little sigh of relief from fans of the Spaniard as we move deeper into the clay swing. Playing with more freedom and a smile on his face bodes well and means better tennis from Carlos, but that is not to say his week in Monte-Carlo was flawless. It was far from it. A combination of Alcaraz dropping his level and his opponents raising theirs meant his week in Monaco was not comfortable, but a win is a win! Facing young American qualifier Ethan Quinn in the first round, this could be a good ‘settler’ for Alcaraz, but only time will tell.

2024 champion Caspar Ruud is also back in Barcelona this week, as is Andrey Rublev and last year’s finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas. Honourable mention to Alex De Minaur who had a great week in Monte-Carlo, most notably that double bagel against Dimitrov in the quarter final. He also sported some new short-shorts; a good look? I’ll let you decide.

It is a stacked field in Barcelona this week, so it should be a good watch with (hopefully) some long, entertaining matches in store. Who will celebrate lifting the title by jumping in the on-site pool on Sunday? Your guess is as good as mine...

Racket Report pick for the title: Carlos Alcaraz

Carlos Alcaraz at the Monte Carlo Masters1000 2025

BMW Open MUNICH, GERMANY

Apr 14 - Apr 20, 2025

ATP 500

The other ATP500 event of the week is Munich, fronted by home favourite Alexander Zverev. Zverev is a two-time champion here, but has not gone past the quarter-finals since his last triumph in 2018. Any tennis fan will know that Zverev has been having a torrid time of it since the Australian Open final loss. It seems to have affected his confidence, mentality and focus. Defeat by Matteo Berrettini in Monte-Carlo was the latest in a long line of early round exits, and he well and truly messed up his chance of making his debut at world number 1 - in fact he has even lost his world number 2 spot following Alcaraz’s win in Monte-Carlo. Now despite this, Zverev should be the clear favourite to lift the BMW Open trophy on Sunday. But could this pressure be his biggest enemy? 

Upgraded from an ATP 250 for this year’s event, some high profile players have decided to travel to Germany to play, such as Ben Shelton, Felix Auger Aliassime and Francisco Cerundolo. Out of Munich and Barcelona I wouldn’t say it is too much of a stretch to say Munich’s field is far more unpredictable. To give you a taste, Felix A-A has been struggling for form since his run to the final in Dubai back in February, Shelton has been unpredictable since his great run to the semis in Melbourne and Cerundolo has been fairly consistent this season, and did play the clay court swing in South-America back in February - reaching a final, semi-final and quarter-final - so we know he is a threat on the clay. Zverev is the real conundrum here though.

Racket Report pick for the title: Alexander Zverev.

Just a little snapshot into what is to come this week in the tennis world. There are a number of players who are choosing to rest their bodies this week with a stacked calendar coming up this next month or so before Roland Garros. This is more so on the ATP side, with Fritz, Djokovic, Draper and Medvedev from the top 10 all taking the week off. This can't hurt. I have no problem with players taking time to look after themselves if it means a more entertaining and productive season, especially when clay is none of these players favourite surface. I just hope this means that more coverage and emphasis is put on the WTA tour this week with the majority of the top players in action. And with Stuttgart and Rouen (a WTA250 event I have not touched on) being indoor clay tournaments we should see full schedules each day - fingers crossed.

Enjoy the play on the clay. Until next time, keep serving! 

E x