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Two of the hottest players on the ATP Challenger Tour extended their winning runs last week.

Zsombor Piros and Tomas Barrios Vera, who were among five Challenger champions on Sunday, each claimed their second Challenger title of the month and extended their match-win streaks to 10.

The Hungarian Piros earned a 6-3, 6-4 final victory against Argentine Juan Manuel Cerundolo at the Oeiras Open 3 in Portugal. The 23-year-old is soaking in back-to-back titles, which have lifted him to a career-high No. 118 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

“I’m speechless honestly, I’ve never won this many matches in a row at this level,” Piros said in his post-match press conference. “I actually surprised myself with these results. I think the second step is just believe I can play this level and not to think it happened just once. It [will] give me big confidence for the future. I have some great memories on court but I think this is the most important [one] now. It’s the most special.”

The clay-court season rolls into the Caja Magica, where the world’s biggest stars will compete for an ATP Masters 1000 title at the Mutua Madrid Open.

Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz leads the field as the top seed in Madrid, while Daniil Medvedev aims to close the gap on Novak Djokovic in the battle for No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

ATPTour.com looks at 10 things to watch in the Spanish capital.

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Alcaraz Defending Champion: Last year, Alcaraz arrived in Madrid off the back of winning the title in Barcelona. The 19-year-old then went on to lift the trophy in the Spanish capital, earning statement wins against Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. Twelve months on and the top seed enters the clay-court event in the same circumstances, having defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Barcelona final on Sunday. Looking to claim the Barcelona-Madrid double again this year, the Spaniard begins against Ugo Humbert or Emil Ruusuvuori.

A three-tournament week on the ATP Tour saw Carlos Alcaraz, Holger Rune and Dusan Lajovic lift trophies in Barcelona, Munich and Banja Luka, respectively. ATPTour.com looks at the movers of the week in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings as of Monday, 24 April 2023.

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No. 40 Dusan Lajovic, +30
The Serbian has jumped 30 spots after he won his second tour-level title at the Srpska Open in Banja Luka. Lajovic overcame World No. 1 Novak Djokovic and World No. 6 Andrey Rublev en route to the title to earn two Top 10 wins at the same event for the first time. The 32-year-old has now won two tour-level crowns, having triumphed on clay in Umag in 2019. Read Banja Luka Final Report & Watch Highlights.

No. 58 Alex Molcan, +15
The 25-year-old has climbed 15 places after reaching his first semi-final of the season in Banja Luka. The Slovakian, who reached a career-high No. 38 last May, earned three consecutive three-set wins before falling against Andrey Rublev.

The Mutua Madrid Open draw has thrown up a number of potential early blockbusters. Daniil Medvedev could face Andy Murray in his opener and Stefanos Tsitsipas could meet former World No. 3 Dominic Thiem in the second round.

Medvedev will try to add to his Tour-leading 31 wins for 2023 at the clay-court ATP Masters 1000 event. The second seed will face World No. 1 Murray first up if the Briton defeats a qualifier in the first round. Jiri Lehecka, the 31st seed, could meet Medvedev in the third round in the Spanish capital, while Taylor Fritz and Cameron Norrie are potential quarter-final opponents for the 27-year-old.

View Madrid Singles Draw

Fourth seed Tsitsipas awaits two-time Madrid finalist Thiem or former World No. 14 Kyle Edmund as he looks to bounce back from his defeat in the Barcelona final to Carlos Alcaraz.

Fresh from defending an ATP Tour title for the first time in Barcelona, Alcaraz headlines the top half of the draw as the defending champion and top seed. The 19-year-old will play Emil Ruusuvuori or Ugo Humbert first up in Madrid, where he defeated Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic en route to the title a year ago.

Carlos Alcaraz capped a perfect week at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell on Sunday by outplaying Stefanos Tsitsipas with a high-quality championship-match display at the ATP 500.

The home favourite was in irresistible touch on Pista Rafa Nadal, where he combined fierce ballstriking and deft forehand drop shots with inspired defence to wrap a 6-3, 6-4 victory and claim his ninth tour-level crown. Although he dropped serve in the third game of the match, Alcaraz showed no further sign of nerves in front of his home fans as he powered to a 79-minute triumph against the World No. 5 Tsitsipas.

"It is incredible," Alcaraz said. "To feel this energy and lift the trophy in Barcelona in front of my family and friends, and most members of my team are here as well. Playing this level and to lift the trophy in front of them is a good feeling for me."

Alcaraz now holds a 4-0 ATP Head2Head record against Tsitsipas, who was chasing his first Barcelona title on his third championship-match appearance. After defending his 2022 title, the 19-year-old Alcaraz is now 10-1 in Barcelona and has won his past 14 ATP Tour matches on Spanish soil.

"Me and my team were talking before the match about staying relaxed,” said Alcaraz. “To want to play the tough moments. Staying relaxed is the most important part for me. To forget the mistakes, everything and be myself on court. Not to think about all the people watching, but just me, the court, the racquet and the final."

Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni continued their impressive season on Sunday when they captured their third tour-level title of the year as qualifiers at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell.

In a tight clash, the Argentines recovered from squandering one championship point in the second to eventually defeat top seeds Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski 6-3, 6-7(8), 10-4.

Gonzalez and Molteni won 80 per cent (37/46) of their first-service points and raced clear in the Match Tie-break to earn their 20th tour-level win together in 2023 in one hour and 52 minutes.

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Earlier this season, Gonzalez and Molteni clinched trophies on clay in Cordoba and Rio de Janeiro. With their victory, they have climbed four spots to fourth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Team Rankings.

Holger Rune produced one of the most remarkable comeback wins of the 2023 season so far on Sunday at the BMW Open by American Express, where the top seed battled physical issues and a daunting deficit to beat Botic van de Zandschulp 6-4, 1-6, 7-6(3) in Munich.

Struggling with an upper right arm issue in the latter stages, Rune trailed 2-5, 40/15 on the Van de Zandschulp serve in the third set. Yet he forged an inspired turnaround on the Bavarian clay, ultimately saving four championship points and recovering from twisting his ankle in the 10th game of the decider to dominate the tie-break.

"I was feeling really exhausted but I was fighting until the end and I tried everything I could to come back into the match," Rune said. "I think for the crowd it was the perfect final. We really pushed each other to the limit and I am super happy I defended the title today."

With his fourth tour-level title, Rune became the first player to successfully defend an ATP Tour title in 2023. The 19-year-old now holds a perfect 9-0 record at the clay-court ATP 250.

"It is the last match and the last push, so you try to find a way," Rune said. "It could help me a little bit to not be as hurt. It was a struggle but I managed to get it done."

Dusan Lajovic capped a dream week at the Srpska Open on Sunday when he clinched his second tour-level title in Banja Luka. The Serbian overcame Andrey Rublev 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 in two hours and 32 minutes to snap the second seed’s eight-match winning streak.

Lajovic, who clawed past Miomir Kecmanovic in three sets in the semi-finals, came out firing in his first tour-level title match of the season. He struck the ball aggressively to pull Rublev around and held his nerve in the third set, serving out the match at the second time of asking to earn his eighth Top 10 win.

"Honestly it was probably the toughest match I have had in the past six months. I felt drained," Lajovic said. "From 5-1 in the third I could not feel my legs and felt a bit dizzy. I knew he was going to fight but somehow I managed to pull it out in the last game. I wasn't even thinking in the last game. I was just playing automatically and I tried to take the ball early on the forehand. I am thrilled and overwhelmed that I did it this week, that I won an ATP [Tour] title.

"The last time I was in a final was four years ago and I have been through a lot since then, lots of ups and downs. This was probably the most unexpected thing for me for this week. But on the other side I still believed in myself, even though I did not have the best last year. This victory means a lot."

The 32-year-old now leads Rublev 2-0 in their ATP Head2Head series, having also beaten the 25-year-old en route to his maiden tour-level crown in Umag in 2019. He is up 30 spots to No. 40 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings following his impressive week at the clay-court ATP 250.

Alexander Erler and Lucas Miedler captured their second tour-level title of the season together on Sunday when they overcome top seeds Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz 6-3, 6-4 in the BMW Open by American Express final.

The Austrians were impressive throughout the 70-minute clash, closing the net sharply and holding their nerves in the key moments. They saved all three break points they faced to triumph in Munich.

“Munich is not that far from Austria, so it was great to play in front of the crowd with the great atmosphere,” Miedler said. “There were a lot of Austrians here as well. It was enjoyable to play here. I think we played amazing today, just too good.”

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Erler and Miedler, who dropped just one set en route to the title, have now won four tour-level trophies since they first teamed in 2021. Earlier this year they won the crown in Acapulco, while their victory in Munich is their second on clay. Two years ago, the pair won their first title on the surface on home soil in Kitzbühel.

Andrey Rublev has become a fans’ favourite. Much to his supporters’ delight, the 25-year-old was put on the hot seat in this week’s edition of ATP Uncovered.

Stars from the ATP Tour and the Hologic WTA Tour provided questions for Rublev to answer.

“Seeing Daniil on video, I don’t like it already,” Rublev said when his close friend Daniil Medvedev popped up on the screen.

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Little did Rublev know that Medvedev would ask three questions, whether the World No. 6 liked it or not.

Carlos Alcaraz will step out onto Pista Rafa Nadal on Sunday hoping to secure a home victory at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell. Even if Stefanos Tsitsipas denies the 19-year-old defending champion in the final, the event in Catalunya will continue to represent a much-loved entity within Spanish tennis.

“This event is important,” Alcaraz’s countryman Albert Ramos-Vinolas told ATPTour.com this week as the clay-court ATP 500 celebrates its 70th anniversary. “It [used to be] the only one that we had in Spain. After we had Valencia also, and now Madrid, but I think because the tournament is in a club, it’s like Queen’s maybe. It’s a special tournament for everybody, for us and for all the fans that are coming.”

The World No. 58 Ramos-Vinolas is not alone in his view that the setting makes the tournament stand out. The Real Club de Tenis Barcelona-1899, nestled in the leafy neighbourhood of Pedralbes, has played an interweaving role in the journeys of many Spanish stars, past and present.

Former World No. 3 David Ferrer is one such example. He visited the event regularly as a child, reached the final four times as a player (falling to 12-time champion Rafael Nadal on each occasion), and is now the tournament director.

“[The event] is part of history,” Ferrer, who grew up down the coast from Barcelona in Valencia, told ATP Media. “It is a tournament that everyone wants to play here in Barcelona. The city is very important, the [club] is different to other tennis clubs. It is not easy in this era to have an ATP tournament in a tennis club.

Carlos Alcaraz’s perfect week continues at the 2023 Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell.

The top-seeded Spaniard eased past Daniel Evans 6-2, 6-2 on Saturday to reach the championship match at the clay-court ATP 500, where he is bidding to become the first repeat champion since Rafael Nadal lifted the trophy three years in a row from 2016-18.

Now 22-2 for the year, Alcaraz will take on Stefanos Tsitsipas as he chases his third tour-level title of 2023. The Buenos Aires and Indian Wells champion enters that clash holding a 3-0 ATP Head2Head series lead against Tsitsipas, a tally which includes a three-set quarter-final win in Barcelona last year.

Alcaraz was clinical with his chances to down Evans in 81 minutes on Pista Rafa Nadal, where he converted five of his seven break points. Evans deployed typical variety in his shots, but his tactics were expertly countered by Alcaraz, who has now won all eight sets he has played this week at the Real Club de Tenis Barcelona-1899.

More to follow…

Stefanos Tsitsipas booked his third championship-match appearance at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell on Saturday by digging deep for a 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 win against Lorenzo Musetti at the clay-court ATP 500.

The second-seeded Greek cooly rebounded from losing a closely fought second set to accelerate away in the decider for a two-hour, 29-minute victory. The Greek’s most destructive weapons, his serve and forehand, were particularly instrumental as Tsitsipas improved his perfect record against Musetti to 4-0.

“It was very physical out there,” said Tsitsipas, who now holds a 16-4 record in Barcelona. “We had to cover lots of metres on the court and he had some incredible defensive shots that I really didn’t expect at all. It was such a mental challenge, I had to go out there and fight it all through [with] the determination of a lion, and just [went] out there to do the best I can.

“He’s a very difficult challenge, especially on this court, so it required a little bit more today.”

Tsitsipas had not dropped serve across three matches in Barcelona prior to Saturday’s semi-final clash, but that record was quickly snapped by Musetti on Pista Rafa Nadal as the Italian broke in the third game. That set the tone for a meeting in which both players excelled on return, with Tsitsipas ultimately converting six of his 11 break points to Musetti's five out of 10.

The BMW Open by American Express in Munich is proving a magical tournament for Holger Rune.

The Danish star won his first tour-level title at the ATP 250 last year. On Sunday, the 19-year-old returned to the final. Rune saved all eight break points he faced to defeat Australian Christopher O’Connell 6-3, 6-2 in 79 minutes.

“It’s been a very good start to the clay season for me and to be able to continue here in Munich means a lot,” Rune said in his on-court interview. “I have very special memories from here, so super excited for tomorrow.”

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Rune has been dominant in his two appearances in Munich, where he now owns an 8-0 record. The teen has never lost a set at the event.

Andrey Rublev advanced to his second final in as many weeks with a 6-2, 6-4 win against Alex Molcan on Saturday at the Srpska Open. One week after claiming his biggest title in Monte-Carlo, the Banja Luka second seed has continued his red-hot form by reaching the title match without losing a set.

"In the beginning I played really well, and then second set a lost a bit of focus," Rublev assessed. "Alex played a few good games and I started to get tight, I started to get nervous. But in the end I was able to win and that's the most important thing."

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The 25-year-old is bidding to join Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev in the club of multiple tour-level titlists in 2023. He could also become the fifth man this season to win an ATP Tour trophy without losing a set, with either Miomir Kecmanovic or Dusan Lajovic to stand in his way in Sunday's final.

"Of course it's always good to finish in two sets, to not play three sets, a long match, because physically you get exhausted," the World No. 6 said of his efficiency. "The deeper you go, it's better if you play two sets because you're fresher for the end of the tournament."

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic withdrew from the Mutua Madrid Open, the tournament announced Saturday on Twitter.

“@DjokerNole is unable to compete at the #MMOPEN,” the event tweeted. “Wishing you a speedy recovery, we hope to see you back on court as soon as possible, Nole.”

?? @DjokerNole is unable to compete at the #MMOPEN

Wishing you a speedy recovery, we hope to see you back on court as soon as possible, Nole ? pic.twitter.com/M44rUvnrH1

Djokovic is a three-time champion in Madrid, where he has earned a 30-9 record. Last year at the Caja Magic he reached the semi-finals, in which he fell in a final-set tie-break to Carlos Alcaraz.

The Serbian is 17-3 in 2023, including title runs in Adelaide and at the Australian Open, where he claimed his record-tying 22nd major crown. Djokovic this week competed in Banja Luka, where he lost in the semi-finals to countryman Dusan Lajovic.

Jamie Murray and Michael Venus claimed their second ATP Tour title as a team with a 7-5, 6-2 win against Francisco Cabral and Aleksandr Nedovyesov in Saturday's Srpska Open final. The British-Kiwi pair, which has exclusively played together this season, did not face a break point in the title match behind an 82 per cent win rate on both first and second serve.

The reigning Dallas champions improved to 2-1 this year in finals (Adelaide-I) with the victory, having reached the title match after saving a match point against in the quarter-finals against Gonzalo Escobar and Diego Hidalgo. The trophy is Murray's 29th and Venus' 19th at tour-level.

"It's our second title together which is cool. It's only April," Murray said post-match. "There's a big swing coming up with a lot of ranking points on offer, a lot of big events. I think for us to come here and put together four really good matches is good news for us going forward. Hopefully we can keep that momentum going."

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Their four wins this week moved Murray/Venus up five spots to 10th place in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings, putting them within touching distance of the Nitto ATP Finals qualifying spots.

Andy Murray has reached No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, won three major titles and lifted 46 tour-level trophies overall. But ‘Coach of daughter Edie’ is staying off the resume for the time being.

Murray, the father of four children, has often spoken about how important his children are to him. But according to his Instagram Stories, it sounds like one of his daughters believes he needs to improve his level of tennis coaching.

“Dear daddy I am not going to play tennis for a while lots of love Edie,” Edie wrote in a note to him.

Murray has taken the feedback in stride by posting about it.

“My first venture into the coaching world has ended in disgrace,” Murray wrote on his Instagram Story. “5 year old daughter has quit telling me I don’t want to play anymore.. you stand too close to me.”

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Top seeds Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz continued their smooth progress at the BMW Open by American Express on Friday with a 7-5, 6-4 win against fellow Gemans Oscar Otte and Jan-Lennard Struff. It was a second win against countrymen in as many days for Krawietz/Puetz, who opened their Munich campaign with a 6-0, 6-3 win against Yannick Hanfmann and Daniel Masur on Thursday at the ATP 250.

While both teams created eight break points in the quarter-finals, the top seeds converted three times while losing serve just once to advance to the last four on home soil. They will next face Robin Haase and Philipp Oswald, who beat Christopher O'Connell and Albano Olivetti on Thursday.

Austrians Alexander Erler and Lucas Miedler also advanced on Friday in Munich with a 6-4, 6-7(7), 10-7 win against Quentin Halys and David Pel. They will meet Indians Yuki Bhambri and Saketh Myneni in Saturday's semis.

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Koolhof/Skupski Survive In Barcelona QFs
Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski navigated a Match Tie-break at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell to edge Nicolas Mahut and Stefanos Tsitsipas in Friday's quarter-finals. The top seeds earned a 6-4, 3-6, 10-7 victory, saving eight of nine break points to advance at the clay-court ATP 500.