Carlos Alcaraz and Holger Rune will be squaring off for the fourth time in their careers when they clash in the final of the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell on Sunday afternoon.
The reality is that the head-to-head history is quite limited given that each of the two young stars have been around for a good while relative to their age. They have faced each other only three times and just once have they completed a full match on the main tour. Alcaraz first got the job done in an abbreviated-set format at the 2021 NextGen ATP Finals before Rune won won by retirement one year later in Paris Bercy. Their most recent meeting came in the 2023 Wimbledon quarterfinals, with Alcaraz cruising in straight sets.
The Spaniard is obviously a big favorite once again, especially with home-court advantage. He is coming off a Monte-Carlo title despite not playing his ‘A’ game, and he has been even better than usual. That is not out of the ordinary, as this tournament is one of Alcaraz’s best. He is on a 14-match winning streak in Barcelona and stands one victory away from a third consecutive title after ousting Ethan Quinn, Laslo Djere, Alex de Minaur, and Arthur Fils all in straight sets.
Rune secured a spot in the title tilt with the loss of only one set. The sixth-seeded Dane dismissed Albert Ramos-Vinolas, Sebastian Baez (three sets), Casper Ruud, and Karen Khachanov.
Although Rune has posted some stellar results in 2025, he has also been all over the place. You can’t be entirely sure what you are going to get from him on any given day–especially from a physical standpoint. With Alcaraz, on the other hand, you can be sure–especially when he is performing in front of his home fans. Count on the top seed taking care of business yet again in Barca.
Pick: Alcaraz in 2
Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on Twitter at @Dimonator.
.aspx?w=360&resize=360,180&ssl=1 "Iga’s Grass Secret Weapon: Instinct")
