Being a tournament director is never easy as things can get very tricky when it comes to handing out wildcards, and Rotterdam Open boss Richard Krajicek admits he laments one of his decisions back in 2021.
The 1996 Wimbledon champion Krajicek is celebrating his 20 years as the director of the ABN AMRO Open this year. He recently disclosed in an interview that he chose not to issue a wildcard to a certain Carlos Alcaraz, just prior to the Spaniard’s ascent to prominence.
The management team of 17-year-old Alcaraz requested a wildcard for the ATP 500 event back in 2021, but Krajicek chose the more seasoned Andy Murray instead.
Things might go your way or work against you at times. Alcaraz requested a wildcard to participate in Rotterdam in 2021. Andy Murray is the one I would have rather given that to,” Krajicek said to Langs de Lijn En Omstreken.
“You want to say no to tomorrow’s top candidate; you don’t want that to happen again.”
At the time, Krajicek’s choice made sense because Murray—a three-time Grand Slam winner and former world No. 1—was a greater attraction than Alcaraz, who was still outside the top 100 in the ATP Rankings.
But, the Dutchman acknowledges that he regrets turning down a potential world No. 1 because the 2021 season ended up being Alcaraz’s breakout year, as he went on to win his first championship at the Croatia Open and finish the year at No. 32.
He upped his game the next year, becoming the youngest-ever world No. 1 and winning his first Grand Slam at the US Open.
Alcaraz has not yet played on the hard courts of Rotterdam since, after receiving that rejection, he decided to travel to South America. During the ATP’s post-Australian Open swing, he frequently competes in Argentina and Brazil.
18-year-old Dino Prizmic, who defeated world No. 1 Novak Djokovic in a set at the Australian Open this year, has been given a wildcard by the former world No. 4 Krajicek, who is aiming to avoid repeating the same mistakes.
This year’s Rotterdam tournament is expected to have a top-tier competition, led by the recently crowned Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner. Other notable participants include world No. 5 Andrey Rublev, world No. 6 Holger Rune, and world No. 8 Hubert Hurkacz.
Daniil Medvedev, who finished second in the Australian Open after spending more than 24 hours on the court, withdrew from the competition and will not be returning to defend his championship.
