Rafael Jódar

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Jódar and the second or maternal family name is Camacho.
Rafael Jódar
Jódar at Espinar Challenger 2025
Country (sports) Spain
Born (2006-09-17) 17 September 2006
Madrid, Spain
Height1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)
Turned pro2026
CollegeUniversity of Virginia[1]
Prize moneyUS $594,406
Singles
Career record7–7 (at ATP Tour level, Grand Slam level, and in Davis Cup)
Career titles0
Highest rankingNo. 103 (2 March 2026)
Current rankingNo. 109 (16 March 2026)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open2R (2026)
Doubles
Career record1–1 (at ATP Tour level, Grand Slam level, and in Davis Cup)
Career titles0
Highest rankingNo. 344 (2 March 2026)
Current rankingNo. 348 (16 March 2026)
Last updated on: 20 March 2026.

Rafael Jódar Camacho (born 17 September 2006) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He has a career-high ATP singles ranking of No. 103 and a doubles ranking of No. 344, both achieved on 2 March 2026.[2] He is currently the No. 5 Spanish player.[3] Jódar won the 2024 US Open Junior singles title.[4]

Early life and background

Jódar was born in Madrid. On his father's side, Jódar's family is originally from Baeza.[5][6] He was not named after Rafael Nadal; his father, his grandfather and his great-grandfather share the name Rafael.[7] He started taking tennis lessons in his early childhood inspired by his idol Nadal.[8]

Junior career

Jódar had good results on the ITF junior circuit, maintaining a 93–18 singles win-loss record.[9] In June 2024, he won the prestigious U18 grass tournament in Roehampton, England, prior to a run at the 2024 Wimbledon Championships that saw him became the last Spaniard in the main draw competition and included a straight sets victory over fourth seed Tomasz Berkieta.[10] He lost in the quarterfinals to Naoya Honda.[11] He also reached the quarterfinals of the doubles category, with compatriot Andrés Santamarta Roig, where they lost to Czech pair Jan Kumstát and Jan Klimas.

In September, he was crowned champion in the boys' singles category at the 2024 US Open, with impressive victories over second seed Kaylan Bigun in the quarterfinal and third seed Rei Sakamoto in the semifinal.[12][13] He defeated first seed Nicolai Budkov Kjaer in the final.[14][15]

Later that season, Jódar qualified for the 2024 ITF Junior Finals, where he was a runner-up. In the final, he lost to Mees Röttgering in straight sets.[16]

He reached an ITF junior combined ranking of world No. 4 on 9 September 2024.[9]

College

Jódar attended the University of Virginia in 2024, before announcing his decision to pursue tennis full-time on 31 December 2025.[17][18][19]

Professional career

2025: Challenger titles, NextGen Finals

In August, Jódar won his maiden ATP Challenger title at the Crete Challenger III, Greece, as an alternate, defeating sixth seed Dan Added in the final.[20] The two players faced again the following week at the Crete Challenger IV, this time Added defeating Jódar in the semifinal.[8]

Ranked No. 283, Jódar won his second title at the 2025 Lincoln Challenger, United States, defeating three seeds en route: Top seed Brandon Holt, fourth seed Patrick Kypson and eight seed Martin Damm Jr., and moved to ninth position in the NextGen race on 20 October 2025.[21][22][23][24]

Jódar won his third straight Challenger title at the Jonathan Fried Pro Challenger in Charlottesville, and became the third Spanish teenager to win at least three Challenger titles, joining Carlos Alcaraz and Nicolas Almagro. He reached a new career-high ranking of world No. 166 on 3 November 2025[25] and moved back to ninth position in the ATP Live Race To Jeddah.[26][27] In November, he officially qualified for the 2025 Next Gen ATP Finals.[28][29] In his opening match, he saved four match points to secure a victory against top seed and eventual champion Learner Tien.[30] He also defeated compatriot and friend Martín Landaluce at the event.[31] Having begun 2025 ranked No. 895 in singles, Jódar climbed more than 700 spots in the rankings across that season.[32]

In December 2025, Jódar announced that he was turning professional full time.[19]

2026: Major, Masters & top 100 debuts, first wins

In January, Jódar made his Australian Open debut as a qualifier,[33] securing a maiden main draw win against fellow qualifier Rei Sakamoto in the first round.[34]

Jódar made his main-draw Masters 1000 debut at the 2026 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, after receiving a wildcard.[35] At the 2026 Miami Open after qualifying for the main draw, Jódar defeated Yannick Hanfmann and Aleksandar Vukic recording his first wins at the Masters 1000-level, to reach the third round.[36][37] He fell to Tomas Martin Etcheverry but despite the loss Jódar reached the top 100 in the singles rankings on 30 March 2026.[38][39]

Personal life

Jódar is a supporter of football club Real Madrid.

Performance timeline

Key
W  F  SF QF #R RR Q# DNQ A NH
(W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.

Singles

Current through the 2026 Miami Open.

Tournament 2026 SR W–L Win%
Grand Slam tournaments
Australian Open 2R 0 / 0 1–1 50%
French Open 0 / 0 0–0  – 
Wimbledon 0 / 0 0–0  – 
US Open 0 / 0 0–0  – 
Win–loss 1–1 0 / 0 1–1 50%
ATP 1000 tournaments
Indian Wells Open 1R 0 / 1 0–1 0%
Miami Open 3R 0 / 1 2–1 67%

ATP Challenger Tour finals

Singles: 4 (3 titles, 1 runner-up)

Legend
ATP Challenger Tour (3–1)
Finals by surface
Hard (3–1)
Clay (–)
Result W–L    Date    Tournament Tier Surface Opponent Score
Win 1–0 Aug 2025 Crete Challenger III, Greece Challenger Hard Dan Added 6–4, 6–2
Win 2–0 Oct 2025 Lincoln Challenger, US Challenger Hard (i) Martin Damm Jr. 6–7(3–7), 6–3, 6–3
Win 3–0 Oct 2025 Charlottesville Men's Challenger, US Challenger Hard (i) Martin Damm Jr. 6–3, 7–6(7–2)
Loss 3–1 Jan 2026 Canberra Tennis International, Australia Challenger Hard Alexander Blockx 4–6, 4–6

ITF World Tennis Tour finals

Singles: 1 (runner-up)

Legend
ITF WTT (0–1)
Result W–L    Date    Tournament Tier Surface Opponent Score
Loss 0–1 Jul 2024 M25 Dénia, Spain WTT Clay Pol Martín Tiffon 2–6, 6–4, 3–6

Junior Grand Slam tournament finals

Singles: 1 (title)

Result Year Tournament Surface Opponent Score
Win 2024 US Open Hard Nicolai Budkov Kjær 2–6, 6–2, 7–6(10–1)

References

  1. ^ Rafael Jodar - Virginia Sports
  2. ^ "Rafael Jodar". ATP. Retrieved 11 July 2024.
  3. ^ "Spain ATP rankings".
  4. ^ "US Open Boys' champ Rafael Jodar taking lessons from Alcaraz, Landaluce". 19 December 2024.
  5. ^ "Rafael Jodar, finalist of the EMILIO Sánchez Vicario Academy European Tennis Championships". ftm.es. 8 April 2022. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
  6. ^ "Rafa Jódar: "Mi referente internacional es Nadal y nacional Alcaraz" - El Partidazo de COPE". 16 January 2026. Retrieved 20 January 2026.
  7. ^ "Spain's Jodar rallies for huge win over Roland Garros champ". 6 September 2024. Retrieved 20 January 2026.
  8. ^ a b "Rafael Jodar's Journey: From idolising Nadal to forging his own path". 15 September 2025.
  9. ^ a b "Rafael Jodar Junior Overview".
  10. ^ "Rafael Jódar, the Spanish promise who is already in the quarterfinals of Wimbledon Junior 2024". Puntodabreak. 11 July 2024. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
  11. ^ "Rafael Jódar falls in the quarterfinals of Wimbledon Junior". Puntosebreak.com. 12 July 2024. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
  12. ^ "Rafael Jódar will compete in the semifinal of the 2024 US Open Junior". puntodebreak. 5 September 2024. Retrieved 5 September 2024.
  13. ^ Berg, Aimee (6 September 2024). "No. 1 Budkov Kjaer to play for second Slam at 2024 US Open". usopen.org. Retrieved 7 September 2024.
  14. ^ "Jódar conquers America at the 2024 US Open Junior". puntodebreak.com. 7 September 2024. Retrieved 7 September 2024.
  15. ^ "Rafael Jodar, Mika Stojsavljevic win US Open junior titles". ESPN. 7 September 2024. Retrieved 28 November 2024.
  16. ^ "Mees Röttgering wint prestigieuze World Tennis Tour Junior Finals". Limburger.nl (in Dutch). 20 October 2024. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
  17. ^ "Virginia Recruiting Class Ranked No. 1". Virginia Sports. 29 January 2024. Retrieved 11 July 2024.
  18. ^ "Dietrich, Jódar Qualify for ATP Next Gen Accelerator Program". 2 June 2025.
  19. ^ a b Kilham, Max (31 December 2025). "Teenager who impressed Rafael Nadal quits college and joins ATP Tour". Tennis Head. Retrieved 1 January 2026.
  20. ^ "Rafa Jodar, 2024 US Open junior champ, wins first Challenger title in 9th outing". ATPTour. 2025-08-18.
  21. ^ "Rafael Jódar Wins ATP Challenger Singles Title". 19 October 2025.
  22. ^ "Rafa Jódar conquers his second Challenger and aims for the top 200". puntodebreak.com. 19 October 2025.
  23. ^ "Jodar, Bailly charge towards Jeddah with big weeks". 20 October 2025.
  24. ^ "Jodar, Bailly charge towards Jeddah with big weeks". 20 October 2025.
  25. ^ "Rafael Jódar wins Charlottesville Challenger, climbs to world No. 166". The Cavalier Daily. 3 November 2025.
  26. ^ "How Rafael Jodar joined Alcaraz in Challenger history..." ATPTour. 3 November 2025.
  27. ^ "Blockx, Jodar win Challenger titles & climb in Live Race To Jeddah". ATPTour. 3 November 2025.
  28. ^ "Jodar's late-season surges helps him seal Jeddah spot, Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF field set". ATP Tour. 29 Nov 2025. Retrieved 29 Nov 2025.
  29. ^ "Rafael Jodar Competing at ATP Next Gen Finals". Virginia Sports. 14 December 2025.
  30. ^ "Jodar saves 4 MPs, stuns top seed Tien in Jeddah thriller, Budkov Kjaer wins". atptour. 17 December 2025. Retrieved 17 December 2025.
  31. ^ "Tien tops Budkov Kjaer, both advance to Jeddah SFs". ATP Tour. 19 Dec 2025. Retrieved 22 Dec 2025.
  32. ^ "Charlie Robertson, Murray's protege, using Next Gen ATP Finals as springboard". ATP Tour. 21 Dec 2025. Retrieved 22 Dec 2025.
  33. ^ "Who qualified for the 2026 Australian Open?". ATPTour. 15 January 2026. Retrieved 15 January 2026.
  34. ^ "The rise of Rafael Jodar: 'He's the most mature 19-year-old you're going to meet'". atptour.com. 21 Jan 2026. Retrieved 21 Jan 2026.
  35. ^ "Monfils, #NextGenATP star Jodar headline Indian Wells wild cards". 28 February 2026.
  36. ^ "Jodar, Blanch lead #NextGenATP takeover in Miami". ATPTour. 19 March 2026.
  37. ^ "Rafael Jodar, now with wins at every tour level, soon to join "very good human" Carlos Alcaraz in Top 100". 19 March 2026.
  38. ^ "Jodar, with Top 100 breakthrough secured, marches on to R3 in Miami". ATPTour. 21 March 2026.
  39. ^ "Rafa Jódar succumbs to the expertise of Etcheverry". 22 March 2026.


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