Career
2023: Historic Major mixed doubles title
Playing in mixed doubles of the 2023 Australian Open with fellow Brazilian Luisa Stefani, they won the first Grand Slam title for Brazil, an unprecedented feat both as a 100% Brazilian duo and individually. [4]
Throughout 2023, Matos' best results in doubles were: a third round at Roland Garros [5] and runner-up at the ATP 250 in Bastad and Chengdu with Francisco Cabral, [6] [7] a semifinal at the ATP 250 in Córdoba with Vega Hernández, [8] [9] and quarterfinals at the ATP 500 in Acapulco, Barcelona and Halle.
At the 2023 Wimbledon, Matos competed in the mixed doubles draw, resuming the partnership with Luisa Stefani. In their opening match against Andrea Vavassori and Liudmila Samsonova, they were defeated 2–1 in sets. [10] [11]
2024: First ATP 500 title
At the beginning of the season, Matos started a new partnership with Colombian player Nicolás Barrientos, which had already been announced at the end of 2023. In their first competition, the Brisbane International, the duo advanced to the second round (round of 16), [12] where they faced the No. 2 seeds, Dutch player Jean-Julien Rojer and British player Lloyd Glasspool, losing and being eliminated in straight sets. [13]
In the partnership’s second tournament, the Adelaide International, Matos and Barrientos defeated the No. 8 seeds, French duo Edouard Roger-Vasselin and Nicolas Mahut, in straight sets to reach the quarterfinals, [14] where they faced the No. 2 seeds, Indian player Rohan Bopanna and Australian player Matthew Ebden. In this match, they were defeated 2–1 in sets and eliminated from the tournament. [15] [16]
After that, Rafael headed straight to Melbourne to compete in the Australian Open, again partnering with Barrientos. [17] Upon arriving in Melbourne, Matos received news that the Australian Open organizers had granted a wild card to Luisa Stefani and him, giving them the opportunity to defend their mixed doubles title won in 2023, even though Matos’s ranking was not high enough to compete alongside Stefani. [18]
In the mixed doubles draw, Stefani and Matos faced British players Joe Salisbury—who partnered with Stefani at the 2023 US Open—and Heather Watson in the first round but were defeated in straight sets, ending their participation in the 2024 Australian Open without successfully defending their mixed doubles title. [19]
Matos partnership with Nicolás Barrientos started to produce good results. At the ATP 250 in Buenos Aires, they reached the semifinals, and in the following ATP 500 tournament in Rio de Janeiro, they won their biggest title, defeating strong pairs such as Krawietz/Putz, Bolelli/Vavassori and Erler/Miedler in the final. [20] [21] [22]
By doing so, Matos became the first Brazilian in this tournament’s ten-year history to win a trophy, in either singles or doubles. [23]
In July, Matos won his ninth ATP title with Orlando Luz at the 2024 Swedish Open. [24]
2025
Matos began his 2025 season competing in the United Cup, representing Brazil. In the tournament's first tie, Brazil faced China. Matos and Carolina Meligeni Alves teamed up for the mixed doubles match, but they were defeated, contributing to a clean sweep by the Chinese team in that tie. [25] [26]
Matos and the Brazilians could not defeat China in the United Cup. This kept Brazil in dificult contention for the tournament. [27]
The defeats from Meligeni/Matos in mixed doubles and earlier from their teammates Beatriz Haddad Maia and Thiago Monteiro in singles matches complicated Brazil's chances of advancing further in the United Cup. [28]
The Brazilian team's struggles continued in the United Cup, as Carolina Meligeni and Rafael Matos were defeated once again in the mixed doubles match during their final tie, this time against Germany. Despite their efforts, the Brazilian team was unable to secure a single victory in the tournament, finishing their campaign without advancing past the group stage. [29] [30]
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