Rising fast? Rafael Jodar’s 25-match snapshot vs. Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal

Rafael Jodar has had a very strong start to his professional tennis career on the ATP Tour.

Now 19, Jodar didn’t step onto the ATP Tour until last year’s Next Gen ATP Finals, having spent two years at the University of Virginia before making the jump.

Since then, he’s picked up his first ATP title in Marrakech, made it to the semifinals in Barcelona, and has now reached the fourth round of the Madrid Open.

Jodar faced Joao Fonseca for his 26th match on tour in Madrid, and when you look back at how his first 25 matches went, they stack up well against early-career records from players like Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal.

Rafael Jodar has a better record on the ATP Tour than Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal

Jodar started his ATP Tour career with 18 wins from his first 25 matches, giving him a winning rate of 72%.

His 25th victory came after a commanding performance against Alex de Minaur in the second round of the Madrid Open. Jodar is already drawing comparisons to Alcaraz, and his early record on tour is stronger than that of his fellow Spaniard.

Alcaraz won 14 of his first 25 matches and didn’t claim his first title until match number 27, while Jodar had already lifted a trophy by his 19th appearance.

Jodar’s early tally also surpasses Joao Fonseca (15), Rafael Nadal (15), and Jannik Sinner (12) at the same stage.

Among ‘The Big Three’, Roger Federer had the slowest start with just 11 wins from his first 25 matches. Of course, that didn’t stop him from going on to win 20 Grand Slam titles over an incredible career.

Rafael Jodar’s ranking rise puts French Open seeding within reach

Jodar took another step forward by beating fellow teenager Fonseca 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-1 to reach the fourth round of the Madrid Open.

The win put him in the last 16 of a Masters 1000 event for the first time and also moved him closer to securing a seeded spot at Roland-Garros.

Jodar, who was ranked outside the top 900 just a year ago, entered Madrid at a career-high world No. 42. The victory over Fonseca pushed him up to No. 34 in the live rankings, and with Alcaraz already ruled out of Paris due to injury, that bumps Jodar into the provisional top 32 for seeding purposes.

With no points to defend before Roland-Garros, he looks well-positioned to hold onto that spot. His next match is against world number 66 Vit Kopriva.

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