If March Madness Masters month wasn’t crazy enough, this month in April not only marks the spring, but also the beginning of the clay-court season.
March saw the birth of two new Masters 1000 winners, in American Taylor Fritz, at his home event of Indian Wells.
While 18-year-old Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz took home the Miami Masters trophy, to underline his future potential in the sport.
This week, the tour has moved to Houston, USA, where talk of the town, Fritz, is in action. And the American is enjoyed by compatriots John Isner,Reilly Opelka and Frances Tiafoe.
Chile’s Christian Garin and the talented but often feisty, Nick Kyrgios also feature.
Alongside the American hard-court event, Morocco’s Grand Prix Hassan II in Marrakesh is underway, and after top seed Felix Auger Aliassime was left stunned, it’s all to play for.
Belgium’s David Goffin and Italian youngster Lorenzo Musetti remain in the field.
Next week, sees the first clay-court Masters event of the year, as the prestigious Monte Carlo event commences.
This will feature all the big boys, from the return of the unvaccinated Novak Djokovic, to Stefanos Tsitsipas, Stan Wawrinka, Jannik Sinner, Gaël Monfils, Cameron Norrie, Fritz, Alcaraz and others.
Djokovic, has spent the past month on the sidelines due to his refusal to take the COVID-19 Vaccine, meaning he missed some of his favourite US events, due to the country’s Coronavirus restrictions on non-vaccinated travellers.
His return to clay is eagerly anticipated after his shock French Open victory last year.
Meanwhile, Wawrinka has been practicing at the Monte Carlo Country Club for the past month, and his comeback after a year out, is also exciting news for tennis fans.
However, this is soured by the absence of Daniil Medvedev who will have surgery on his hernia, whilst Matteo Berrettini misses out after a recent hand surgery.
The week of the 18th April will see another prestigious event, in ATP 500 Barcelona Open, begin.
A tournament often dominated by the King of Clay Rafa Nadal, his rib injury has opened the door for his young predecessor, Alcaraz, to step up and win a big Spanish tournament.
Although, Tsitsipas and the returning Dominic Thiem, may have something to say about that.
The Serbia Open takes place the same week as Barcelona, where Djokovic is expected to participate in his home event for the very first time.
To round off the month, the week of the 25th sees the BMW Munich Open and Millennium Estoril Open in Portugal, play host to the final ATP 250 events before the start of the fourth Masters event of the year in Madrid, in May.
Having seen Nadal, Djokovic, Thiem and Tsitsipas dominate the clay in recent seasons, will a new face emerge to contest this?
