What's at Stake: Nadal returns to head a strong draw in Acapulco

February goes out the way it came in: Eventfully. With the big spring hard-court Masters events in Indian Wells and Miami almost upon us, it will be a while before fans have their choice of tournaments to watch again. So you should enjoy switching between Acapulco, Dubai, and Sao Paulo while you can this week. The first two are 500-level events on the men’s side, and they have the strong draws to prove it.

Abierto Mexicano TELCEL (ATP)

Acapulco, Mexico

$1,789,445; 500 ranking points

Hard court

Draw is here

In recent years, Acapulco has begun to make the most of its proximity on the calendar to Indian Wells. Rather than branding itself as part of the all-clay Golden Swing through South America, the tournament has switched to slow hard courts, finagled a 500-level designation, and padded its prize money. The players, hard-courts and dirt-ballers alike, have followed.

Rafael Nadal is the most prominent of those players who have made this Mexican resort town a regular stop on their schedules. Runner-up here last year, Rafa will try to make up some of the ground he lost this month to Roger Federer in their two-man race for the No. 1 ranking. Nadal, who hasn’t played since injuring his hip at the Australian Open, will start against his countryman Feliciano Lopez—Rafa leads their head to head 9-4, but Feli has won the last two—and could play the man who beat him in the final here last year, Sam Querrey, in the third round.

Alexander Zverev is the top seed on the other side of the draw. The German had a disappointing start in Melbourne, but he turned it around with two wins in Davis Cup the following weekend. Can he carry that momentum forward here? Zverev starts against Steve Johnson and could play John Isner in the third round.

Also here: Dominic Thiem, Juan Martin del Potro, Jack Sock, Hyeon Chung

First-round match to watch: Kei Nishikori vs. Denis Shapovalov

Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships

Dubai, UAE

$3,057,135; 500 ranking points

Hard court

Draw is here

Acapulco is closer to the same time zone as Indian Wells, but Dubai still has the money: $3 million dollars’ worth in total compensation this year. That’s usually enough to draw at least one, if not two or three, members of the Big 4. But with Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray on the sidelines, and Federer having already played his quota of February matches in Rotterdam, the Dubai field isn’t quite as top tier as it once was. Grigor Dimitrov, Lucas Pouille, Roberto Bautista Agut, and Damir Dzumhur are the first four seeds.

First-round match to watch: Pouille vs. qualifier Ernests Gulbis

Abierto Mexicano Telcel (WTA)

Acapulco, Mexico

$226,750; WTA International

Hard court

Draw is here

As an International-level event with prize money in the $200,000 range, the women’s tournament in Acapulco is significantly lower-profile than the men’s. But there will be players to watch, and players who will want to try to build some momentum before heading to Indian Wells. First among them, and first-seeded, is Sloane Stephens. The American hasn’t played a match since the Australian Open, and hasn’t won one since the U.S. Open. She’ll try to snap that streak against Pauline Parmentier. Sloane won the title in Acapulco in 2016.

Also here: Kiki Mladenovic, Belinda Bencic

Brasil Open (ATP)

Sao Paulo, Brazil

$582,870; 250 ranking points

Red clay

Draw is here

The ATP’s Golden Swingers make the relatively short trip from Rio to Sao Paulo this week. The cast of characters will be familiar to anyone who tuned in for Rio: Albert Ramos-Viñolas, Fabio Fognini, Pablo Cuevas, and Gael Monfils are the top four seeds.

ATP Acapulco (Feb. 26-28)

• Watch all the action from the Mexican Open on the Tennis Channel App starting February 26 at 5:00 p.m. ET, including extended coverage of three outer courts only available on Tennis Channel Plus.

ATP Dubai (Feb. 26-28)

-Don’t miss outer court coverage of The Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championship live on Tennis Channel Plus beginning February 26 at 5 a.m. ET

ATP Sao Paolo (Feb 26-Mar. 4)

-Live Brazil Open coverage begins February 26 at 10:30 a.m. ET on Tennis Channel Plus, featuring Gael Monfils, Pablo Cuevas and Fabio Fognini

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