World No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz will take part in South America's biggest tennis bonanza after he was confirmed as the first entrant in the main draw of the 2024 Rio Open.
The Rio Open, held at the Jockey Club Brasileiro, Brazil, is a 500-level tournament played on outdoor clay courts in the last week of February forming part of the Golden Swing. Alcaraz will return to Rio de Janeiro for a fourth time in his career.
The tournament holds a very special in Alcaraz's memorabilia. He won his very first ATP main draw match as a skinny and little-known 16-year-old in 2020. That year, Alcaraz entered the event as a wild card and repaid the tournament organizers' faith in him by defeating compatriot Albert Ramos Vinolas in three sets.
When he returned on his second trip in 2022, he was already an established main-event ATP star. Testament to this, he won his first ATP 500 title beating seasoned clay-court specialists such as Jaume Munar, Fabio Fognini, and Diego Schwartzman.
Alcaraz joined his childhood idol Rafael Nadal and retired countryman David Ferrer, who are the other Spanish champions in the Rio Roll of Honor list.
Since the tournament's inception in 2014, it is the Spaniards who have dominated the competition accounting for three of the nine titles. Alcaraz almost made it four wins in 2023 but lost to British lefty Cameron Norrie in a remarkable final.
"I am very happy to play the Rio Open in 2024. The tournament is special for me. It was where I won my first ATP match and where I won my first ATP 500. I have a special relationship with the fans, I'm excited to be in Rio again."
As reported by the Spanish tabloid MARCA, Alcaraz is set to miss the Australian Open warm-up tournaments. He'll play the first Grand Slam of 2024 in Melbourne, before taking at least a two-week rest. Alcaraz's participation in Rio is further confirmation that his schedule will be tailored towards playing the Golden Swing once more having signed up to play the Buenos Aires 250 in Argentina in the same month.
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