It was a hugely impressive period of form from a talented player who is set to have a long and glamorous career in the sport if events pan out the way many expect.
The second half of 2025 would be marred by injury. A lower back problem halted his Roland Garros campaign earlier than anticipated, as he was set for a long period on the sidelines. A failed return at the Canadian Open was his last appearance on court for a period of time.
A highly anticipated return came on home soil when he competed at the Open Occitanie. This was the start of an impressive comeback where he would reach the final of the Qatar Open, again thwarted by Alcaraz, before enjoying a hugely profitable Sunshine swing.
After his heroics last year, he had climbed to a career high of 14th in the world. Because of the injury, he had slowly been declining down the order. There was a chance that if he did not perform up to scratch in the USA, he would lose more ground. In the end, he ended up getting more points than last year. The 21-year-old matched his last-eight appearance at Indian Wells before going one better in Miami. He survived multiple match points against Tommy Paul before sealing a tie against Jiri Lehecka in the semi-finals, failing to confirm a first Masters 1000 final.
“I only had two or three days to get ready for Monte-Carlo”
The signs on court are very promising, but there is also caution surrounding him. That was a lot of competitive tennis played in the USA, added to the indoor events played beforehand. He was listed to compete in the Monte-Carlo Masters, but made the sensible choice to sit this one out, delaying the start to his clay swing in favour of rest.
He explained his decision to the media ahead of the tournament in Catalonia. “After the Miami semifinal, we decided it might be better to skip Monte-Carlo to prepare 100% for the clay swing,” he stated.
A visit to the doctor made things more complicated, limiting his time to prepare for the third Masters 1000 tournament of the year. “I only had two or three days to get ready for Monte-Carlo—there was no real chance to be competitive. Especially since I had to go to Munich to see a doctor and confirm everything was okay, then return. So we figured it was better to take some time, do a week or 10 days of intensive training, then be ready to compete here. I saw the doctor and everything checks out.”
He is going straight into the deep end in Barcelona. With no prior clay matches played this year, he will hope to quickly get up to speed as he looks to defend the points from the semi-final from last year. “I hope to play as well as last year, or better if possible,” he said. “And avoid matches as long as my last one, because four and a half hours was pretty grueling. So if I can deliver big wins but a bit shorter, count me in.”