Top five title favourites in men's singles at Barcelona Open 2025

Carlos Alcaraz returns to Barcelona, aiming for his third title at the ATP 500 event.

The ATP Tour’s clay season has gotten off to a brilliant start with some wonderful tennis at the Monte Carlo Masters. The tournament continued the trend of shocking results of the season, as four of the top five-seeded players failed to make it to the fourth round. The eventual champion, Carlos Alcaraz, was the only player who survived the scare.

He will once again be a primary force at the ATP Barcelona Open 2025, which will see its 72nd edition. The tournament, called Trofeo Conde de Godó (Count of Godó Trophy), is the most prestigious in Spain after the Madrid Open. The Spanish players have dominated the tournament with the legendary Rafael Nadal at the top with 12 titles.

2025 is going to bring more surprises than ever before, let’s see if anyone can prevent another feat from Spain. Here’s a list of the top five title favourites in men’s singles at Barcelona Open 2025.

5. Alex de Minaur

Alex de Minaur is one of the most improved players in 2025. He had a positive start to the season at the Australian Open and Rotterdam, as he lost to the eventual champions in both tournaments. But it hasn’t gone as well as planned, as the Australian has lost to lower-seeded players in his last five tournaments. The 26-year-old would want to keep the complacency factor if ever there was one.

Coming into the Barcelona Open, he has happy memories from the tournament. Especially from last year as he beat the tournament’s most successful player Rafael Nadal in the second round.

Alex would want to repeat the strategy and play he displayed against Nadal. It will be a challenging task for the Australian to get closer to the title, and he will be relying on his Speed.

4. Andrey Rublev

The year 2025 has been a mixed bag for Andrey Rublev. Although he won the title at Doha, he has suffered first-round exits in five tournaments this year. With a big first serve and a combination of aggressive forehand and a consistent backhand, he will always be in the reckoning in the tournament. He has roped in Marat Safin as part of his coaching team ahead of the clay season.

The Russian coach will work on his game to adapt to the slow nature of clay. A year ago, Rublev was the top seed in Barcelona and Carlos Alcaraz had withdrawn from the tournament. But the 27-year-old suffered a shocking defeat to Brandon Nakashima.

The Russian would like to perform better this year and if he gives his best, he can be a contender for the title.

3. Stefanos Tsitsipas

Often compared to Roger Federer for his aggressive all-court play with his strong forehand, Stefanos Tsitsipas has been one of the most watched players in the circuit.

He loves playing on clay and has won multiple titles at the Monte Carlo Masters and reached the finals of the French Open, Madrid Open, Italian Open, and Barcelona Open. Now his focus will be on performing well by winning the title in this tournament.

He suffered a shocking first-round exit in the Australian Open earlier this year. While he struggled in Doha, his title-winning reign in Dubai would have boosted the confidence of the 26-year-old.

The performances have been topsy-turvy in the last few weeks, but the Greek would want to bring back his good memories of the Barcelona Open and could be a real challenger for the title.

2. Casper Ruud

Casper Ruud will enter the Barcelona Open as the defending champion. Last year’s journey to success was as sweet as the result, with the Norwegian lifting the trophy without losing a set. It was his first ATP 500 title, and he beat Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final. Ironically, Casper had lost a final to the same guy a week before at the Monte Carlo Masters.

This win helped him overcome the fear of finals Jinx, having lost three Grand Slam finals and an ATP Tour Finals. But the defending champion is going through a rough patch this season. Of the six tournaments he has participated in this year, he has failed to reach the last eight in five. But the 26-year-old loves playing on clay and will be looking to be at his best to defend his title.

1. Carlos Alcaraz

Carlos Alcaraz will return to Barcelona full of confidence after winning the Monte Carlo Masters. It was his first Masters title in over a year. Laying his hands on the trophy in Monte Carlo was the best thing that could have happened to the 21-year-old, having missed out on becoming the youngest player to complete a career slam at the Australian Open earlier this year.

While he lost to Novak Djokovic at Down Under, Jack Draper showed the Spaniard the door at the Indian Wells, where he entered the tournament as a two-time defending champion.

Alcaraz was a two-time defending champion last year at Barcelona but withdrew from the tournament due to an injury. He is the top-seeded player in the tournament and will look to complete the unfinished business.

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