The rise of Rafael Jodar: ‘He’s the most mature 19-year-old you’ll ever meet’ | ATP Tour

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The height of Rafael Jodar: ‘He’s the most mature 19-year-old you’ll ever meet’

The 19-year-old Spaniard is competing in a major tournament for the first time

January 21, 2026

Last July, Carlos Alcaraz fell in the Wimbledon final to Jannik Sinner. It was a heavy defeat for the Spaniard, who despite his disappointment showed vision.

“In the past year, I have gone through different situations that I have learned from,” said Alcaraz. “Right now I’m in a position where I’ve said a few times that, okay, I just take everything that comes my way. Like, okay, I just lost in a Grand Slam final, but I’m proud to be in the final.”

His acceptance speech caught the attention of Andres Pedroso, the head coach at the University of Virginia. Pedroso posted a video of his team, including Rafael Jodar, Spain’s #NextGenATP star.

“We believe that the best players in the world accept who they are, accept their style of play, accept their strengths and weaknesses – especially their weaknesses – and accept all the situations that occur in the game,” said Pedroso. “If you do a better job of accepting what’s happening and who you are, you’re going to do a better job of being fully present at the next point.”

Receiving remains a mainstay of Virginia’s program, and it holds true for Jodar. After qualifying for a major for the first time at the Australian Open, the teenager let go of a two-set advantage against 19-year-old Rei Sakamoto in the first round. That didn’t stop Jodar from finishing the job against his Japanese opponent.

“I try to do my best, I try to give the best level I have that day and as coach Pedroso would say, I just try to accept everything that comes,” Jodar told ATPTour.com after the match. “There are things you can’t control, but if you have a strong mind that day, you can give yourself a chance to win that day.”

Jodar is a freshman after one year at UVA, but assistant coach Brian Rasmussen has him in Australia and remains very close to Pedroso. Both coaches beat the class of 2025 Next Gen ATP Finals contenders and, importantly, off the court.

Rafael Jodar, Rafael Nadal and Martin Landaluce” style=”width:100%;” src=”https://www.atptour.com/-/media/images/news/2026/01/21/12/16/jodar-nadal-landaluce-2025.jpg”>
^{Jodar, Rafael Nadal and Martin Landaluce at the 2025 Next Gen ATP Finals. Photo: Corinne Dubreuil/ATP Tour}
“He’s the most mature 19-year-old you’ll ever meet out there. He really knows what he wants and that’s the way he was raised,” Pedroso said. “Just a simple life, working hard, treating people the right way, doing the right thing and being the right person, but focusing on what he wants to do and his dream is to be a world-class champion.”

The Spaniard came to Virginia as one of the most respected players in recent memory so it was not clear that he would suddenly become a champion. Fresh off the US Open boys singles title, Jodar was in a new world in college.

“His transition to the United States was really tough. He’s an only child, he’s lived his whole life in Spain and when he showed up in Virginia, I’m not going to lie, his first few weeks were tough because it’s a different place,” Pedroso recalled. “It’s a different language, he’s learning in English. College tennis is a completely different game than junior tennis and pro tennis. He was able to adapt quickly and from the beginning, his first match was a little scary.”

That match came with Connor Thomson of the University of South Carolina, an experienced player who had qualified for the ATP Next Gen Accelerator. With fans crying from the stands, it was clear that Jodar was no longer playing junior tennis.

“College tennis is a completely different sport with all the yelling and screaming and it’s a hectic environment and Rafa was a fish out of water,” Pedroso said. “He looked at me a few times during the game and said, ‘Coach, where am I?’

It didn’t take long for Jodar to get used to it. Despite suffering from cramping and a strained ankle, she would beat the No. 1 player in the country on the No. 1 team and become one of the best players in college tennis. But what stands out to those around him is not the tennis player – Jodar’s performance speaks for itself – but the way he carries himself.

“Rafa’s father told me that every time he won a big tournament, when he came back to Madrid, the first thing he did for his son was to beat one of the youngest kids in the team,” said Pedroso. “Rafa would go out there, hit the balls with him, have fun with the child or just feed him the balls. That is a small example of how well he was brought up and the type of people the Jodar family is.”

Jodar wasted no time in leaving his mark in 2026. He won 10 of his first 11 matches, reached the ATP Challenger final in Canberra and is now in the second round in Melbourne after his thrilling five-set win against Sakamoto. His mental toughness has shone through.

“If we stay there and do the right things mentally point by point, their level ends up going down and ours ends up going up,” Rasmussen said. “I think what makes Rafa so special is that he knows he can do that in four, five hours because he’s proven that many times, whether he’s back in Madrid with his dad or in his 12 months at UVA.

“He’s challenged himself to check all the boxes and take care of the little details in his life whether it’s academically, socially or on the tennis court. And I believe if you put those many little details together within 24 hours day in and day out, you’ll have a lot of confidence that you know you can stay there.”

A year ago, the teenager was never in the world’s Top 900, and is now number 134 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings. Regardless of what happens when Jodar plays 16th seed Jakub Mensik on Thursday for a place in the third round, it’s safe to say the Spaniard will accept the result, learn from it and continue his rapid rise.

“I want to enjoy every moment when I play tennis,” said Jodar. “This is the first goal when I enter the field.