Madrid Open (tennis) explained

Mutua Madrid Open
Type:joint
City:Madrid
Country:Spain
Editions:22 (2024)
Venue:Madrid Arena (2002–2008)
La Caja Mágica (since 2009)
Surface:
Clay – outdoors (since 2009)
Website:mutuamadridopen.com
Men's Singles: Andrey Rublev
Women's Singles: Iga Świątek
Men's Doubles: Sebastian Korda
Jordan Thompson
Women's Doubles: Cristina Bucșa
Sara Sorribes Tormo
Atp Category:Masters 1000
Atp Draw:96 / 48 / 32
Atp Prize Money: (2024)
Wta Tier:WTA 1000
Wta Draw:96 / 48 / 32
Wta Prize Money: (2024)

The Madrid Open (Spanish; Castilian: Masters de Madrid|link=no; formerly known as the Madrid Masters, and currently known as the Mutua Madrid Open for sponsorship reasons) is an annual professional tennis tournament held in Madrid, Spain. It is played on clay courts at the Caja Mágica in Manzanares Park, San Fermín, and is held in late April and early May. The tournament is an ATP Masters 1000 event on the ATP Tour and a WTA 1000 event on the WTA Tour. The tournament is traditionally played on a red clay surface, though it was played on blue clay courts in 2012.[1]

Ion Țiriac, a Romanian billionaire businessman and former ATP professional, was the owner of the tournament between 2009 and 2021.[2] According to Digi Sport which interviewed Țiriac in 2019, the tournament brings to the city of Madrid annual benefits exceeding €107 million. In 2021, Țiriac sold the tournament to New York–based IMG for approximately €390 million.

History

From its inauguration as a men's only event in 2002, the tournament was classified as one of the ATP Masters Series tournaments, where it replaced the now-defunct Eurocard Open in Stuttgart. It was held from 2002 to 2008 in the Madrid Arena as the first of two Master's indoor hard court late-season events that preceded the ATP Tour Finals (also indoors). It was replaced on the Masters schedule by the Shanghai Masters after the 2008 season. In 2009, the tournament was reborn under new ownership with a new location, new surface, and new time slot. It expanded to include a premier women's contest (replacing the tournament in Berlin) and shifted to an earlier period of the tennis season to become the second Master's tournament of the spring European clay-court swing (replacing the Hamburg Open). The event moved outdoors to Park Manzanares, where a new complex with a retractable-roof equipped main court was constructed, the Caja Magica.

Țiriac announced in April 2019 that he has extended his sponsorship contract of the Mutua Madrid Open for 10 additional years, until 2031.[3] Because he agreed to continue in Madrid, Țiriac will receive more than 30 million euros from the city of Madrid in the coming years.[4] Feliciano López was announced as the Madrid tournament director, commencing 2019.[5]

Starting in 2021, the women's tournament, part of the WTA tour, expanded to become a two-week tournament.[6] By December of the same year, it was announced Tiriac sold the event to IMG, which is now the new organizator and has already planned an expansion of courts, including a new stadium for over 10,000 people, to be built by partly draining the lake circling Caja Magica.[7]

In June 2022 ATP announced some changes to the ATP calendar for the coming year. The ATP Masters 1000 event in Madrid along with those in Shanghai and in Rome would now be held over two weeks starting in 2023, thus becoming 12 day events just like the Masters 1000 events in Indian Wells and Miami.[8]

Blue clay

Tiriac proposed and implemented in 2012 a new color of blue clay for all the courts' surfaces, motivating that it would supposedly be better visually, especially for viewers on television (analogous to some hardcourt surface events migrating to blue from various previous color schemes). Some speculated that the adaptation of blue colour was a nod to the titular sponsor of the tournament, the Spanish insurance giant Mutua Madrileña. This controversial change was subsequently granted and began to be used in the 2012 edition of the tournament.[9] In 2009 one of the outer tennis courts had already been made of the new surface for the players to test it. Manuel Santana, the Open's director, had assured that aside from the colour, the surface kept the same properties as the traditional red clay.[10]

On 1 December 2011, Țiriac confirmed that the blue clay surface was officially approved for the 2012 edition of the tournament, in both the ATP and WTA circuits.[11]

However, after the event took place in 2012, threats of future boycotts from some players, especially Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic (who both lost on the blue surface), led the tournament to return to the traditional red clay for the 2013 season.[12] This was due to the blue clay being more slippery than regular clay.[13]

Roger Federer is the only male player to win the tournament on three different surfaces: hard courts (2006), red clay (2009), and blue clay (2012). Serena Williams is the only female player to win the tournament on two different surfaces: blue clay (2012) and red clay (2013).

Past finals

Men

Singles

YearChampionsRunners-upScore
↓  ATP Tour Masters 1000  ↓
Andre Agassi (1/1) Jiří Novák(walkover)
Juan Carlos Ferrero (1/1) Nicolás Massú6–3, 6–4, 6–3
Marat Safin (1/1) David Nalbandian6–2, 6–4, 6–3
Rafael Nadal (1/5) Ivan Ljubičić3–6, 2–6, 6–3, 6–4, 7–6(7–3)
Roger Federer (1/3) Fernando González7–5, 6–1, 6–0
David Nalbandian (1/1) Roger Federer1–6, 6–3, 6–3
Andy Murray (1/2) Gilles Simon6–4, 7–6(8–6)
2009 Roger Federer (2/3) Rafael Nadal6–4, 6–4
Rafael Nadal (2/5) Roger Federer6–4, 7–6(7–5)
Novak Djokovic (1/3) Rafael Nadal7–5, 6–4
Roger Federer (3/3)3–6, 7–5, 7–5
Rafael Nadal (3/5) Stan Wawrinka6–2, 6–4
Rafael Nadal (4/5) Kei Nishikori2–6, 6–4, 3–0 (ret.)
Andy Murray (2/2) Rafael Nadal6–3, 6–2
Novak Djokovic (2/3) Andy Murray6–2, 3–6, 6–3
Rafael Nadal (5/5)7–6(10–8), 6–4
Alexander Zverev (1/2)6–4, 6–4
Novak Djokovic (3/3) Stefanos Tsitsipas6–3, 6–4
2020 Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Alexander Zverev (2/2) Matteo Berrettini6–7(8–10), 6–4, 6–3
Carlos Alcaraz (1/2) 6–3, 6–1
Carlos Alcaraz (2/2)6–4, 3–6, 6–3
Andrey Rublev (1/1) 4–6, 7–5, 7–5

Doubles

YearChampionsRunners-upScore
↓  ATP Tour Masters 1000  ↓
2002 Mahesh Bhupathi
Max Mirnyi
6–3, 7–5, 6–0
2003 Wayne Black
Kevin Ullyett
6–2, 2–6, 6–3
2004 Mark Knowles (2)
Daniel Nestor (2)
Bob Bryan
Mike Bryan
6–3, 6–4
2005 Mark Knowles (3)
Daniel Nestor (3)
Leander Paes
Nenad Zimonjić
3–6, 6–3, 6–2
2006 Mark Knowles
Daniel Nestor
7–5, 6–4
Bob Bryan (2)
Mike Bryan (2)
Mariusz Fyrstenberg
Marcin Matkowski
6–3, 7–6(7–4)
2008 Mahesh Bhupathi
Mark Knowles
6–4, 6–2
2009 Simon Aspelin
Wesley Moodie
6–4, 6–4
Bob Bryan (3)
Mike Bryan (3)
Daniel Nestor
Nenad Zimonjić
6–3, 6–4
Bob Bryan (4)
Mike Bryan (4)
Michaël Llodra
Nenad Zimonjić
6–3, 6–3
Mariusz Fyrstenberg (2)
Marcin Matkowski (2)
6–3, 6–4
Bob Bryan (5)
Mike Bryan (5)
Alexander Peya
Bruno Soares
6–2, 6–3
Daniel Nestor (5)
Nenad Zimonjić (2)
Bob Bryan
Mike Bryan
6–4, 6–2
Marcin Matkowski
Nenad Zimonjić
6–2, 6–7(5–7), [11–9]
Rohan Bopanna
Florin Mergea
6–4, 7–6(7–5)
Nicolas Mahut
Édouard Roger-Vasselin
7–5, 6–3
5–3 (ret.)
Jean-Julien Rojer (2)
Horia Tecău (2)
6–2, 6–3
2020 Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
1–6, 6–3, [10–8]
6–7(4–7), 6–4, [10–5]
6–3, 3–6, [10–3]
6–3, 7–6(9–7)

Women

Singles

YearChampionsRunners-upScore
Dinara Safina (1/1) Caroline Wozniacki6–2, 6–4
Aravane Rezaï (1/1) Venus Williams6–2, 7–5
Petra Kvitová (1/3) Victoria Azarenka7–6(7–3), 6–4
Serena Williams (1/2) Victoria Azarenka6–1, 6–3
Serena Williams (2/2) Maria Sharapova6–1, 6–4
Maria Sharapova (1/1) Simona Halep1–6, 6–2, 6–3
Petra Kvitová (2/3) Svetlana Kuznetsova6–1, 6–2
Simona Halep (1/2) Dominika Cibulková6–2, 6–4
Simona Halep (2/2) Kristina Mladenovic7–5, 6–7(5–7), 6–2
Petra Kvitová (3/3) Kiki Bertens7–6(8–6), 4–6, 6–3
Kiki Bertens (1/1) Simona Halep6–4, 6–4
2020 Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Aryna Sabalenka (1/2)6–0, 3–6, 6–4
Ons Jabeur (1/1)7–5, 0–6, 6–2
Aryna Sabalenka (2/2)6–3, 3–6, 6–3
Iga Świątek (1/1)7–5, 4–6, 7–6(9–7)

Doubles

YearChampionsRunners-upScore
Květa Peschke
Lisa Raymond
4–6, 6–3, [10–6]
Gisela Dulko
Flavia Pennetta
6–2, 7–5
Květa Peschke
Katarina Srebotnik
6–4, 6–3
6–1, 3–6, [10–4]
6–2, 6–4
Sara Errani (2)
Roberta Vinci (2)
6–4, 6–3
Garbiñe Muguruza
Carla Suárez Navarro
6–3, 6–7(4–7), [10–5]
Martina Hingis
Sania Mirza
6–4, 6–4
Tímea Babos
Andrea Hlaváčková
6–4, 6–3
Tímea Babos
Kristina Mladenovic
2–6, 6–4, [10–8]
Gabriela Dabrowski
Xu Yifan
6–3, 6–1
2020 Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Gabriela Dabrowski
Demi Schuurs
6–4, 6–3
Desirae Krawczyk
Demi Schuurs
7–6(7–1), 5–7, [10–7]
Coco Gauff
Jessica Pegula
6–1, 6–4
Barbora Krejčíková
Laura Siegemund
6–0, 6–2

Records

Player(s)RecordYear(s)
Most titles
Men's singles Rafael Nadal2005, 2010, 2013–14, 2017
Women's singles Petra Kvitová2011, 2015, 2018
Men's doubles Bob Bryan
Mike Bryan
2006–07, 2010–11, 2013
Daniel Nestor2002, 2004–05, 2009, 2014
Women's doubles Sara Errani
Roberta Vinci
2012, 2014
Victoria Azarenka2011, 2023
Most finals
Men's singles Rafael Nadal2005, 2009–11, 2013–15, 2017
Women's singles Simona Halep2014, 2016–17, 2019
Most consecutive titles
Men's singles Rafael Nadal2013–14
Carlos Alcaraz2022–23
Men's doubles Mark Knowles
Daniel Nestor
2004–05
Bob Bryan
Mike Bryan
2006–07, 2010–11
Most consecutive finals
Men's singles Rafael Nadal2009–11, 2013–15

See also

External links

40.3688°N -3.684°W

Notes and References

  1. News: Madrid's blue clay given red card by ATP. 11 May 2019.
  2. News: Madrid Masters goes bling. tennisworldusa. 8 April 2011.
  3. Web site: El Ayuntamiento indemnizará al dueño del Mutua Madrid Open con medio millón de euros por la Copa Davis. ABC. 9 April 2019. es.
  4. Web site: Ion Țiriac a încheiat o nouă super-afacere. Va semna un contract de peste 30 de milioane de euro. Digi Sport. 9 April 2019. ro.
  5. Web site: Feliciano Lopez is going to be Madrid's tournament director. Baseline.
  6. Web site: Madrid Open expands to become a two-week tournament. 27 November 2020.
  7. Web site: IMG compra la dueña del Mutua Madrid Open y el Acciona Open de España y ficha a Gerard Tsobanian. 2playbook. 6 December 2021. es.
  8. Web site: 2022-06-09 . ATP calendar: Madrid and Rome over two weeks from 2023, Munich advances . 2022-08-27 . tennisnet.com . en-EN.
  9. Web site: El Mutua Madrid Open se jugará en una pista azul. Diario. AS. 29 November 2011. as.com. 28 March 2018.
  10. News: Benito . Álvaro . Santana: "Se confundió el color de las pistas con el estado de las mismas" . 3 March 2024 . Marca . 26 June 2012 . Madrid . es.
  11. Web site: Is blue the new red? Madrid's clay court revolution. December 2011 . 1 December 2011.
  12. Web site: Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal threaten to boycott Madrid Open if they don't change blue clay-court. 11 May 2012.
  13. News: Even four year later, bad feelings linger over the blue clay in Madrid . New York Times . 2016-05-08 . 2023-07-04.