Bernabé Zapata Miralles (born 12 January 1997) is a Spanish professional tennis player. He has been ranked by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) as high as world No. 37 in singles, which he achieved in May 2023. He also has a career-high doubles ranking of world No. 404, attained in August 2023.
Professional career
2018: ATP debut
Zapata Miralles made his ATP main draw debut at the 2018 Geneva Open after qualifying for the singles main draw and he had his first main draw win by defeating Florian Mayer in straight sets.
2020–21: Maiden Challenger title, Top 125 & Major debut & first win
He won his maiden title at the 2020 Internazionali di Tennis del Friuli Venezia Giulia in Cordenons, Italy defeating Carlos Alcaraz.
He had his second ATP main draw win when he beat John Millman in the first round of 2021 Dubai Tennis Championships in straight sets.
On his Grand Slam debut he qualified for his first at the 2021 French Open, and then for his second Major at the 2021 Wimbledon Championships.
Zapata Miralles was the champion in the Challengers in Heilbronn and Poznań claiming his first and second ATP Challenger titles of 2021. As a result, he achieved a new career high ranking of world No. 110 on 2 August 2021.
He subsequently qualified for his third Major in a row at the 2021 US Open as lucky loser. He reached the second round for the first time in his career defeating fellow Spaniard Feliciano López.
2022: French Open fourth round & first top-15 win, top 75 debut
Ranked No. 130 at the 2022 French Open, Zapata Miralles qualified to make his second consecutive Grand Slam main draw at this Major. He won his first match at this Major defeating wildcard Michael Mmoh. In the second round he recorded a career breakthrough, upsetting World No. 14 and 13th seed Taylor Fritz for his maiden third-round showing at a Grand Slam and first top-15 win. He went one step further to reach the fourth round, having never past the second round of a Major before, defeating John Isner in a five set hours match. He was the first Spanish qualifier to reach the fourth round of a Grand Slam since recording started in 1983. As a result, he secured a top 100 debut at world No. 97 on 6 June 2022 and two weeks later he reached No. 90. Following his title at the 2022 Meerbusch Challenger he reached a career-high ranking of No. 74 on 15 August 2022.
2023: First Two ATP semifinals in Latin America, Masters fourth round, top 40
At the ATP 250 2023 Córdoba Open he broke the record for the longest match ever in the tournament history when he defeated compatriot Roberto Carballés Baena in three hours and 26 minutes in the first round. The previous-longest match was in 2020, when Albert Ramos Viñolas outlasted Pablo Andújar in three hours and 20 minutes.
At the next ATP 250 2023 Argentina Open he reached the semifinals for the first time in his career defeating two seeds, fourth seed, home favorite, Argentine Diego Schwartzman in the second round and fifth seed, another Argentine Francisco Cerundolo in the quarterfinals but lost to top seed compatriot and eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz. As a result, he reached a new career high ranking of world No. 63 on 20 February 2023.
He reached back to back semifinals in the Latin American Golden Swing at the ATP 500 2023 Rio Open defeating two seeds again, fourth seed Francisco Cerundolo again and seventh seed Albert Ramos Viñolas. He lost to second seed and eventual champion Cameron Norrie. As a result, he moved another 20 positions in the top 45 at world No. 42 on 27 February 2023.
At the 2023 Mutua Madrid Open he reached the third round of a Masters for the first time defeating Mackenzie McDonald and upset 19th seed Dan Evans (tennis). He then defeated another qualifier Roman Safiullin to reach the fourth round on his debut at this tournament. He lost to fourth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas. Following this result, he reached a new career high ranking in the top 40 at world No. 37 on 22 May 2023. Seeded 32nd for the first time at a Grand Slam at the 2023 French Open he lost in the first round to Diego Schwartzman in five sets. He lost also in the first round at the 2023 Wimbledon Championships to Tomas Martin Etcheverry after being two sets to love up in a 4 and 1/2 hours match over two days after play was suspended due to darkness.
Performance timelines
Singles
Current through the 2023 Shanghai.
ATP Challenger and ITF Futures finals
Singles: 19 (12–7)
Doubles: 3 (1–2)