Madrid Open: Tsitsipas, Collins eye more momentum

Can two of the most intriguing stories in tennis carry on in the Spanish capital?

Collins announced in January that 2024 would be her last season, and she’s played some of the best tennis of her career since, capturing her biggest title in Miami before winning in Charleston the very next week.

She recorded wins over Rybakina, Sakkari, Ons Jabeur and clay stalwart Daria Kasatkina in that run, rising to world No.15 after starting the year at 54th.

World No.1 Swiatek will celebrate a 100th week at the top spot as Madrid kicks off, while former world No.1 Halep (winner here in 2016 and 2017) will continue her comeback after spending time away from the game due to doping litigation.

Tsitsipas was just 11-6 on the 2024 season going into Monte-Carlo, where he notched wins over Olympic champion Alexander Zverev, Sinner and two-time French Open runner-up Casper Ruud, who had stunned Djokovic en route to the final.

While all eyes have been on Sinner’s rise, Tsitsipas and Grigor Dimitrov, who had a resurgent run into the Miami final (where he fell to Sinner), have thrown a wrench into the top tier of the men’s game in recent weeks, though world No.4 Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev (who won Monte-Carlo last year) continue to be a factor.

Young guns Holger Rune and Ben Shelton have had promising starts on the clay, too, Shelton winning his first title on the surface in Houston, while Rune made a run to the Monte-Carlo quarters – losing to Sinner.