How Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal performed on their ATP Finals debuts as Rafael Jodar qualifies for 2026 event
Speaking of Alcaraz, let’s take a look at how the Spanish magician – and fellow Spanish tennis legend Rafael Nadal – fared on his ATP Finals debut.
Key points
- Carlos Alcaraz’s ATP Finals debut Alcaraz qualified for the 2022 ATP Finals after winning his first Grand Slam title at the 2022 US Open.
- Rafael Nadal’s ATP Finals debut Nadal, a 22-time Grand Slam champion, made his ATP Finals [then the Tennis Masters Cup] debut in 2006.
- I was approaching the match with the right attitude, right mentality.” Djokovic went on to win a record-breaking seventh ATP Finals title, beating Jannik Sinner in the final.
Carlos Alcaraz’s 2026 ATP Finals campaign Group stage: defeated Daniil Medvedev 6-4, 6-4 Group stage: defeated Andrey Rublev 7-5, 6-2 Group stage: lost to Alexander Zverev, 7-6, 3-6, 4-6 Semi-finals: lost to Novak Djokovic 3-6, 2-6 “But tonight from the very beginning I felt the ball well.
Additional details
- Despite reaching the final on two occasions, Nadal never won the ATP Finals.
- Nadal, who qualified second in his group behind eighth seed James Blake, was beaten by Roger Federer in the semi-finals.
- The Spanish starlet has qualified for the ATP Finals, despite only turning professional at the start of this year.
- Like Alcaraz, the Spanish superstar reached the semi-finals, beating Nikolay Davydenko and Tommy Robredo en route.
- Novak Djokovic swiftly ended Alcaraz’s hopes of a debut triumph, winning their semi-final contest 6-3, 6-2.
How this summary was made: extractive summary — built from the sources' own reporting. It is drawn only from the reporting of the sources listed below — read the originals for full detail. How we summarize →
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