Pablo Carreno Busta was born in Gijon, Spain, on January 12, 1990, to his parents, Alfonso and Maria Antonia. He started playing tennis at age six and generally played on hard courts at youth level. Also, Carreno Busta played casually until age 15, when he relocated to train at the Real Club de Tenis Barcelona.
At junior level, Carreno Busta reached sixth in the official rankings and he won 11 ITF Futures titles. In 2011, the Spanish player made his ATP debut at the Barcelona Open but lost in round one against Benoit Paire. Moreover, Carreno Busta won two Challenger titles in 2011.
However, his progression slowed following a back injury in 2012. As a result, the Spanish player missed most of the season. Late in 2012 and early in 2013, Carreno Busta built form and fitness at the ITF Futures level once more. Yet it was clear he was ready to progress after winning 42 out of 43 matches at the Futures level. Carreno Busta then started to show his potential at ATP level.
He reached the semi-finals at the Portugal Open and made his first Grand Slam main draw appearance. After navigating three qualifying matches at the 2013 Roland Garros, the Spanish player was eliminated by Roger Federer in round one. Between 2014 and 2015, Carreno Busta established himself on the ATP Tour.
He made all four Grand Slam main draws for the first time in 2014 and reached the US Open third round that year. Another consistent 2015 season followed and he finished that year 51st in the ATP rankings. However, Carreno Busta went up a level in 2016 and produced one of his most successful seasons to date.
Early in the season, the Spanish player reached his first-ever ATP final at the Brazil Open. In April, he made the Estoril Open final, too, before losing to Nicolas Almagro. Carreno Busta maintained his consistency throughout 2016 and went a step further late in the season. In August, he won his first-ever ATP title at the Winston-Salem Open and beat Roberto Bautista Agut in the final.
Then, he won the Kremlin Cup late in the campaign and finished the season 39th in the rankings. Despite falling in the third round of the 2017 Australian Open, Carreno Busta found early season form at the Rio Open. He reached the final at this competition and lost to Dominic Thiem.
However, in April, Carreno Busta won the Estoril Open after defeating Gilles Muller in the final. A strong start to 2017 gave Carreno Busta confidence to perform in the Grand Slams. At the French Open, he progressed to the quarter-finals before losing to eventual champion Rafael Nadal. Although he missed Wimbledon, Carreno Busta came back for the US Open and progressed to the semi-final, only to lose to Kevin Anderson in the final four.
Due to his strong 2017 season, Carreno Busta ended the campaign 10th in the rankings. Carreno Busta couldn't maintain his high performance levels in 2018. Despite making the semi-final stage at the Miami Open and the Barcelona Open, he couldn’t go further than round four at the Grand Slams.
Also, it was the first time in two seasons that the Spanish player didn’t make an ATP final at any competition. A similar campaign came in 2019, where Carreno Busta couldn’t reach the latter stages of the majors. Yet he was successful at the lower-ranked competitions and won the Chengdu Open in September.
He was also part of the Spain team that won the 2019 Davis Cup. Carreno Busta’s 2020 season was largely disrupted due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Although, he hit form at the Grand Slams late in the season. He made his second US Open semi-finals but lost against Alexander Zverev across five sets.
Moreover, Carreno Busta made the French Open quarter-final for a second time, only to lose against Novak Djokovic. He recovered for the 2021 campaign and made a strong start by winning the inaugural Andalucia Open. Further success came at the Hamburg Open, where the Spanish player defeated Filip Krajinovic.
Carreno Busta then competed at the Tokyo Olympics and won the bronze medal. At the 2022 Barcelona Open, the Spanish player reached another final but lost against compatriot Carlos Alcaraz.
However, Carreno Busta won his first Masters title at the Canadian Open late in 2022. Despite heading into the competition unseeded, the Spanish player progressed to the final and beat Hubert Hurkacz. Following injury early in 2023, Carreno Busta had an eight-month layoff. He returned at Challenger level late in the season. However, his elbow injury required surgery in 2023, leading to another significant hiatus.
