MARIN CILIC WILL PLAY THE RAFA NADAL OPEN BY MOVISTAR

13.08.2024

This year, the Rafa Nadal Open by Movistar lineup will feature an illustrious face from the circuit: former world No. 3 Marin Cilic.

Croatian Marin Cilic will be one of the big stars of the sixth edition of the Rafa Nadal Open by Movistar, which will be held from August 26 to September 1 at the Rafa Nadal Academy facilities.

Former world number 3 Marin Cilic has an enviable track record thanks to the US Open he won in 2014, his 20 ATP titles , the Olympic silver medal he won in Tokyo and the Davis Cup he won with Croatia. After two seasons marred by injuries, Marin Cilic will return to compete on the ATP Challenger Tour, where he won two titles in 2007 (Casablanca and Rijeka) and where he will try to be crowned champion again 17 years later.

The highlight of his career came in August 2014 when he arrived at the US Open as the 14th seed and in the context of an era dominated by the so-called “Big 4”. Since Juan Martín del Potro won the US Open in 2009, only Stan Wawrinka at the 2014 Australian Open had been able to steal a Grand Slam from the world’s top four: Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray. The giant from Medjugorje beat Federer in the semi-finals and beat Kei Nishikori in the final by a three-way score of 6-3.

In addition to the US Open, the Croatian’s greatest achievements include his stellar performances representing his country. After the painful defeat in the 2018 Davis Cup final against Argentina, Cilic bounced back and just a year later gave his Croatia its second title. As if that weren’t enough, in 2021 he won a brilliant Olympic silver medal in Tokyo.

The Rafa Nadal Open by Movistar will welcome another US Open champion after the participation of Andy Murray (winner at Flushing Meadows in 2014) and Carlos Alcaraz , who played the Challenger three years before achieving his first Grand Slam title.

The presence of the Croatian will undoubtedly be one of the great attractions for tennis lovers. The public will be able to attend the Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar for free to enjoy this tournament of the ATP Challenger Tour circuit that takes place in Manacor the last week of August. The only requirement is to have downloaded the free tickets through the official website of the event .