Age: The event was first staged in 1897, which makes it 125 years old.
Appearance: Opulent. Intimate. Easy on the eye. Think dramatic coastal cliffs, luxurious villas, the azure waters of the Mediterranean.
Hang on, we’re still talking about a tennis tournament, right? Yes, but there are tennis tournaments and there are tennis tournaments. This is the latter.
Are you quoting a James Bond film? Maybe. Although let’s not forget that Monaco is no stranger to Bond movies, what with the famous Casino de Monte Carlo featuring in both Never Say Never Again and Goldeneye.
And this is relevant how? Well, the casino often features in the marketing of the tournament. Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic paid a visit before the 2008 edition, and this year Stan Warinka had a hit with Djokovic in the casino square.
You mean they play a Masters 1000 in a town square? Of course not. The event itself is held on the red clay courts of the Monte Carlo Country Club, where some of the greatest dirtballers in the sport’s history – Bjorn Borg, Guillermo Vilas and Gustavo Kuerten among them – have taken the spoils. Rafael Nadal, with 11 titles, is the most successful player in the tournament’s history.
So Nadal will be the man to beat, presumably? He would be if he were here. As it is, the Spaniard is back home in Mallorca nursing the fractured rib he suffered in Miami. But with Covid restrictions easing in Europe, another former champion, Novak Djokovic, is back in the hunt. The Serbian top seed will take star billing in Monte Carlo as he returns to the tour to begin the long run-up to the defence of his French Open title.
At least he won’t need to watch out for incoming Spaniards this week. Yeah, about that. Djokovic faces Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, the Spanish world No 46 and a quarter-finalist in Monte Carlo last year, in his opening match. He could then meet newly crowned Miami Open champion Carlos Alcaraz in the last eight – although first he would probably need to get past Britain’s Dan Evans, who won their only previous encounter at this very tournament last year. A first meeting with Alcaraz – who has lost just two of his 20 matches this season, and is widely regarded as a serious contender for Roland Garros – would be quite the test.
Sounds like a tough draw. It could certainly pose some problems. Djokovic has played only three matches this year, and he’ll need some time to get going – particularly on clay, where it traditionally takes him a while to find his feet. Let’s not forget he was beaten in Dubai by the Czech qualifier Jiri Vesely, ranked 123 at the time, after which he admitted that lack of regular competition was a source of concern.
He did? Indeed. “The more matches I play, the more comfortable I get on the court,” he said. “I need the match play.”
Fair enough. Anyone else Djokovic should be worrying about? Casper Ruud, who is also in his half, for starters. The Norwegian fourth seed is never more at home than with the red dirt underfoot and, having reached a career-high ranking of seventh following his run to the Miami final, the 23-year-old will be full of confidence heading into the European clay-court swing. Cameron Norrie, the seventh seed, will have his work cut out against Ruud if their projected quarter-final materialises.
How about the bottom half of the draw? It’s a tough call, but the smart money is probably on Stefanos Tsitsipas, the third seed and defending champion.
Tsitsipas? You mean that Greek guy who used to perform more costume changes than the Avengers? The very same. Although after a combined total of just three wins in Indian Wells and Miami, lately he hasn’t been on court long enough to worry about changing his clothes. Tsitsipas thrives on clay, though, and if he can recapture something of the form he showed this time last year, he should be the player to beat in the lower half. That said, his draw could be easier.
How so? Well, after a potential opener against Fabio Fognini, the unseeded Italian who won the title in 2019, he’ll potentially need to get past Felix Auger-Aliassime, his conqueror in the Rotterdam final a couple of months ago, in order to make a projected semi-final against second seed Alexander Zverev. Although with last year’s beaten finalist Andrey Rublev in his quarter, Zverev could have his work cut out to make it that far.
And the winner is? Man of the moment Carlos Alcaraz. Yes, winning back-to-back titles at this rarefied level is asking a lot of an 18-year-old. But Alcaraz is no ordinary 18-year-old, and right now it feels riskier betting against him than tipping him to win his third title of the season.