Sunday features the third round action from both the men’s and women’s singles draws.
Sunday’s most anticipated matchup sees 19-year-old Brazilian Joao Fonseca take on 19-year-old Spaniard Rafael Jodar. Fonseca has been a heavily-hyped commodity for over a year now, while Jodar just recently exploded onto the scene, and has already won 28 matches this year at all levels. Which young prodigy will prevail on Sunday night, in the first of likely many career meetings?
Third round action on the day also includes World No.1 Jannik Sinner, World No.2 Elena Rybakina, and World No.3 Coco Gauff.
Here’s a rundown of the most notable matches on Sunday (in chronological order, all times local):
Sorana Cirstea (25) vs. Coco Gauff (3) – 11:00am on Manolo Santana Stadium
This is a rematch from just last month in Miami, where Gauff prevailed in three sets, one of four three-set victories Coco secured on her way to that final. Back in 2020, a then-15-year-old Gauff also defeated Cirstea in three, in their only other previous meeting. Both players won their opening round matches in straights.
Jannik Sinner (1) vs. Elmer Moller (Q) – Not Before 4:00pm on Manolo Santana Stadium
Sinner actually dropped the first set in his opening round on Friday, but came back to comfortably claim the last two sets, against Benjamin Bonzi. The top seed is now 25-2 on the year, and is on an 18-match winning streak, having won the last four Masters 1000 events. This is his first encounter with Moller, 22-year-old qualifier from Denmark who benefitted from a mid-match retirement in the last round via Gabriel Diallo.
Qinwen Zheng (32) vs. Elena Rybakina (2) – Not Before 8:00pm on Manolo Santana Stadium
Rybakina narrowly escaped defeat in her opening match, coming back from a set down to prevail 7-5 in the third against Elena-Gabriela Ruse. That brought her 2026 record to 26-5, in a year she started off by winning her second Major, and most recently won a clay court title in Stuttgart. Qinwen missed most of the second half of last season due to elbow surgery, and is just 5-3 since returning this season. She also came back from a set down in the last round, against Sofia Kenin. Rybakina leads their head-to-head 3-1, which includes a tight three-set victory just two months ago in Doha, Qinwen’s first tournament back from injury.
Joao Fonseca (27) vs. Rafael Jodar (WC) – Last on Manolo Santana Stadium
Fonseca is a modest 10-7 this season, and he received a walkover in his opening round from Marin Cilic. Jodar has already notched two victories this week, and in the last round, dropped just four games against fifth-seeded Alex de Minaur. And as mentioned earlier, Jodar has 28 wins this year at all levels, which includes a Challenger title on a hard court, and his first ATP title on a clay court. It will be most interesting to see who prevails in this battle between these two rising stars with formidable forehands, on a night where Jodar will enjoy the huge advantage of a Spanish crowd in Madrid.
Sunday’s full Order of Play is here.
