Alexander Zverev won his second ATP title in as many weeks and extended his winning streak on clay to nine matches with a 6-4 6-4 victory against Dominic Thiem in the ATP Madrid Masters 1000 final. The title is Zverev’s third at the Masters level, as he remains the most successful of the ATP’s next gen talents at this point in their careers.
Zverev showed no signs of fatigue as he wrapped up his matches quickly in Madrid this past week. The young German didn’t drop a set against Evgeny Donskoy, Leonardo Mayer, John Isner, and Denis Shapovalov, he wasn’t even pushed to a tiebreak. Shapovalov had a great week, reaching a Masters semi on clay for the first time in his promising career.
Thiem reached his second ATP final of the season with close victories over Federico Delbonis and Borna Coric at the start of the week, and then straight set wins against Rafael Nadal and Kevin Anderson. The win against Nadal snapped the Spaniard’s winning streak on clay dating back to last season, as Thiem rose up and played his best match of the season in that spirited contest.
Mektic/Peya won the doubles final over the Bryan Brothers, as one of the Bryans came down with a hip injury in the opening set.
Rafael Nadal Looks to Stay Unbeaten On Clay At ATP Madrid 2018 Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic
The Madrid Masters 1000 is the second of three ATP Masters on clay, and another chance for Spaniard Rafael Nadal to show off his legendary talents on clay, and for now, extend his unbeaten streak on the surface. Here is your full preview with predictions.
Nadal’s Quarter
Nadal hasn’t lost on clay this year and will open against Gael Monfils or a qualifier, I have him facing countryman Pablo Andujar in round 3. Andujar opens with fellow Spaniard Feliciano Lopez, presuming he wins that it will be a struggling Diego Schwartzman or Adrian Mannarino in round 2. Nadal over Andujar is the pick for round 3.
Dominic Thiem will begin against a qualifier or Mischa Zverev, I’ll back Thiem to win that and defeat Pablo Carreno Busta or Borna Coric in round 3 to reach the quarters. The winner of PCB/Coric takes on J.L. Struff or a qualifier in round 2.
Juan Martin Del Potro should open his clay court season with a win over Damir Dzumhur or Julien Benneteau, I’ll back Richard Gasquet to edge Tomas Berdych and Karen Khachanov/qualifier before falling to Del Potro in the third round.
Kevin Anderson faces Roberto Carballes Baena or a qualifier, while Roberto Bautista Agut drew Jared Donaldson followed by Yuichi Sugita or Philipp Kohlschreiber. Kohli, a current finalist in Munich, is likely going to face fatigue, and I’ll back Bautista Agut over Anderson in round 3.
Grigor Dimitrov will get a big matchup with Milos Raonic or a qualifier, his third round tilt should be a bit easier with Benoit Paire/Lucas Pouiille or Denis Shapovalov/Tennys Sandgren featuring. No one in this section is in great form besides Dimitrov, I have Paire winning a pair of matches before falling to the Bulgarian.
Kei Nishikori vs. Novak Djokovic is the match of the first round, both players are formerly elite and hoping to return to form with Madrid presenting a great opportunity. I’m more confident in Nishikori right now, and I have him beating Djokovic and Kyle Edmund/Daniil Medvedev to reach round 3. David Goffin has a great shot at making a run if he can get past Hyeon Chung (or Robin Haase) in round 2. I’ll go with Nishikori over Goffin in a challenging section of the draw.
Both Alexander Zverev and his potential 2nd round opponent Stefanos Tsitipas are currently in ATP finals (Munich and Estoril). I’ll go with Zverev to defeat Tsitipas/qualifier and Fabio Fognini to reach the quarters. Fognini opens with Leonardo Mayer, Paolo Lorenzi or Fernando Verdasco will follow.
America’s #1 and #2 John Isner and Jack Sock are in the same section. I have Sock being upset by Pablo Cuevas, with Cuevas going on to defeat Albert Ramos/Peter Gojowczyk in round 2. Isner should defeat Guillermo Garcia-Lopez or Ryan Harrison to reach the third round, and I’ll go with Isner over Cuevas at that stage.
Nadal is the heavy favorite against Thiem, but did lose to him on clay last year. Del Potro and Nishikori should have good weeks, while Isner benefits from his draw.
Semis
Nadal d. Del Potro
Nishikori d. Isner
Look for Nishikori to have a solid week, and Nadal to stay unbeaten on clay, taking home another title.
Day five ended with one of the biggest shocks of the tournament so far as third seed Stan Wawrinka was knocked out of the tournament by his good friend Benoit Paire.
It was an entertaining affair with two of the tour’s best shotmakers trading blow for blow. Wawrinka got out of the gates quickly with a break and had two opportunities to go a double break up in the first. However Paire started to grow into the match as the set wore on, and the Frenchman was able to break back at 4-2. Wawrinka earned break points in the following game, but Paire saved them before earning a break himself at 5-5. The world number 52 served out the set 7-5 to take the lead in the match.
His momentum was seemingly altered when rain disrupted play and forced the roof to be closed, and Stan took advantage with a break of serve. The Swiss failed to serve the set out though with a loose game, but immediately broke the following game to take the match to a decider.
Paire came alive in the third set, showing what he can do when his mind is in the right place. He hit winners from all areas of the court and dominated the final set with a double break. The Frenchman successfully served out the match to cap off one of his best performances for a long time.
“I am really happy because it is never easy to play against a good friend.” Paire said post match. “I think it was more difficult for him today because we are very close and to play each other in the second round was not a good role for us, but I am happy because today I won and I played a good match.”
Not only has the week been positive for Paire on the tennis court, he also celebrated his 28th birthday on Tuesday. How did he celebrate? “I had a good dinner with my girlfriend.” Paire said with a smile “It was a good thing for me, I wanted just to have rest because I was playing the day after my birthday, so it was the week of my birthday we are going to say and I hope it will be a good week.” Paire moves on to face Pablo Cuevas in the third round after he ousted Nicolas Mahut earlier in the day
In a epic hour battle on Manolo Santana stadium, Rafael Nadal outlasted Fabio Fognini in three sets to book a third round match against Nick Kyrgios.
The Spaniard was largely outplayed by the Italian in the first set, but Fognini failed to take advantage of the many opportunities that came his way. The world number 29 was twice a break up in the set and even served for it at 5-4, but as can often be the case his brilliance was mixed in with madness and Nadal ended up taking the set in a tiebreaker 7-3.
The second set was what the first set should have really been for Fognini. This time when he got the break of serve he was able to hold throughout despite facing two break back points in the fifth game. The Italian served out the set to take us to a decider with the match on a knife’s edge.
The crowd were expectedly Pro-Nadal and cheered every point he won and nervously sat on their hands when he lost one. As the middle of the set approached Nadal pounced and earned a break of serve, but Fognini would not go away. As Nadal served for the match at 5-3, the Fognini that had won the second set started to reappear and the Italian earned two break back points. The First was saved with a thumping forehand, but the second went astray and we were back on serve. Nadal pushed again for the finish, earning match-point on the Fognini serve but the Italian saved it with another big forehand. But his brilliance was swiftly followed by mediocrity, and three errors later Rafa was victorious.
“I think that even though I played really badly, my attitude has been very positive.” Nadal said post match. “My attitude and the will to win today’s match was there. My level of tennis was not so high today, but I managed to make it through the first round. It was uncomfortable. “Luckily I was able to win, and tomorrow I have another opportunity. Hopefully I’m ready to do much better than today.”
The world number four goes on to face another dangerous opponent in Kyrgios who famously beat Nadal at Wimbledon 2014. The Australian made quick work of Ryan Harrison, defeating him 6-3 6-3 in less than an hour.
It promises to be a blockbuster showdown on Thursday, one Kyrgios is looking forward to.
“I played Rafa last year in Rome, we had a battle there, 6-4 in the third and we obviously had that battle at Wimbledon too.” Kyrgios said post match. “I think every time we play each other, the surface plays a factor, but when playing playing each other and competing against each other we both want to win really bad. It is going to be an exciting match either way”
Novak Djokovic battled from a break down in the final set to overcome an inspired Nico Almagro to make the third round of the Mutua Madrid Open.
The Serb was 3-0 down in the decider but came back to win 6-1, 4-6, 7-5 in a dramatic two hour and … minute match on Manolo Santana stadium.
Djokovic looked wobbly in his opening service game, double faulting and hitting some tight errors. Almagro found himself a break up early, but Djokovic recovered to take the next six games as the Spaniard struggled to find the court.
The second set as a much different story. With nothing to lose and the home crowd behind him, Almagro began to play inspired tennis, hitting winners off both wings and serving big. He eventually got his reward in the final game of set where he broke to take it 6-4.
The form continued into the third where the world number 76 broke again, showing signs of the player that won 13 ATP World Tour titles. But just like many times in the past, nerves began to get the better of the Spaniard. He was broken back at 3-1, then once against a 5-5 as the pressure began to tell. Djokovic would successfully serve out the match to escape a tough opener against an inspired Almagro.
“Well, this was the fourth match on the clay court season for me this year, and all of them went 7-5 or 6-4 in the third set. Every match more or less that I’ve played was quite close, dramatic as well. I guess I’m supposed to be tested in every match on clay.” Djokovic said post match. “From positive side, from that perspective, is good for psychological aspects and mental strength and getting confidence back. Obviously when you’re not winning too many matches, you have to build the confidence level. So to win the matches like this definitely helps confidence.
“I thought that for almost two sets I’ve played really well. Had 15-40 two times in the second set to finish off the match in straight sets. But, you know, I didn’t use my opportunities. He served well. Then he started to swing through the ball. Four games in a row he played really, really well.
“It’s tough to play Nico on any surface. Especially here where it’s altitude, it played quicker a little bit. He loves playing on clay. He was obviously motivated. He has a lot of strength in his shots, a lot of precision. He can, from both corners, hit equally well. If he doesn’t make many mistakes, he can really beat anyone. I could feel his very high quality, especially the end of the second set and the beginning of the third.
“But I hung in there and I knew that eventually I’m going to get my chances and going to get some looks on the second serves. When they’re presented, you know, I was ready to use them, which I did.” Djokovic faces Feliciano Lopez next after the Spaniard beat Gilles Simon 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(3).
Top seed Angelique Kerber is out of the Mutua Madrid Open after retiring 6-3, 5-0 down against Eugenie Bouchard.
The German did not hold serve once during the match which was largely dominated by the Canadian, then pulled up with a leg injury that ultimately forced her to retire from the match.
“I don’t know what’s exactly. I know it’s the left hamstring.” Said Kerber post match. “I just felt it in the last game. I think it was not the last point, but the point, like, before. So yeah. I think now I will just check it. I will check it maybe tonight or tomorrow. I will see. I hope it’s not too serious. But, yeah, I can feel it a little bit.”
Bouchard faces Svetlana Kuznetsova in the quarter finals. The Russian defeated Qiang Wang in straight sets earlier in the day.
Tsonga withdraws from Madrid. Ferrer advances to face Nishikori
Jo Wilfried Tsonga has withdrawn from the Mutua Madrid Open due to a right shoulder injury.
The Frenchman was scheduled to face Spain’s David Ferrer second on Arantxa Sanchez court, but withdrew just hours before his round of 32 match. “The problem is I stretch a muscle in my shoulders. I don’t want to take any risk.” Tsonga said in a press conference. “It’s something I did, I think, last week on the practice. I had little bit of pain from the match of Kuznetsov.
“Yeah, like I said, I don’t want to take any risk anymore because there is other tournament in few weeks. I want to play them 100%. So no risk for me.”
The 10th seed is unsure whether or not he will play Rome next week, but this could hinder the Frenchman’s plans to be fully fit for his home grand slam. “You know, for me, for the moment I will see on the next few days, how it goes. I’ll take, of course, a decision later if I go or not.” Tsonga added.
With a right calf strain earlier in the season followed by the birth of his first child, Tsonga has not played much tennis in 2017, and we are unsure how long he will be out with the shoulder injury. As for Ferrer, the Spaniard goes into the third round to face Kei Nishikori.
The Japanese, who stated pre-tournament that he is not 100%, got off to a slow start against the in-form Diego Schwartzman, but recovered from a set down to win 1-6, 6-0, 6-4 on Arantxa Sanchez court. The sixth seed looked almost dead on his feet in the first set which was dominated by the Argentine, but he recovered to take the second set 6-0. The third was the most competitive set with Nishikori failing to serve it out at 5-3. The Japanese did not let that detour him on his path to victory as he broke the very next game to seal his passage into round three.
“It was a very tough one.” Nishikori said in his post match press conference. “He obviously playing good, very solid from baseline. He was very aggressive in the first set. But second set I start grinding little more, and playing little smarter, I think. I have to say little bit lucky for me. There was couple net and on the lines. Sometimes I need some luck to win.
“But second and third I’m very happy with my tennis. Play really good tennis.”
This was Nishikori’s first appearance on clay after recent injury woes have kept him out of action for a number of weeks. The sixth seed claimed prior to the tournament that he will not risk anything this week and will see how it goes. But after his win against Schwartzman he feels better physically. “(I) Felt pretty good. Yeah, that was my first match of the clay. In the beginning I wasn’t playing hundred percent. But second and third I was feeling pretty good on the court, moving well. So I was very happy.” Nishikori added.
Mladenovic eases into quarter finals- speaks Dodin and Sharapova
Kristina Mladenovic’s great year continues after defeating Oceane Dodin 6-2, 6-1 to make the quarter finals of the Madrid Open.
The Frenchwoman had the measure of her compatriot throughout, returning and serving well on her way to an easy victory. Mladenovic had been critical of Dodin’s decision to not play Fed Cup, but felt there was not tension between the two players. “I always say out loud what I think.” Said Mladenovic. “No, as I said in my interview before the match, on my side there’s absolutely no tension. I mean, you know, I just speak out what I think.
“I still think this. But I think this girl is playing great tennis. She has a huge qualities. She’s young. I think if she’s working in the right direction, she can play really well. I mean, she proved it this week. She beat such a great players.
“You know, on the court I didn’t feel any tension. I’m there to focus on myself, to win my matches, no matter who is on the other side of the net. I’m just very happy to get there, be in the quarters.
“I’m sure there wasn’t anything negative out there on the court. We both played well, had a great attitude. Overall she’s having a great attitude on the court, even if I’m not talking to her a lot.
“The Fed Cup topic is something else. Hopefully one day she will be on the other side. I mean, the girls that understand this spirit, hopefully she can see good things about it.”
Mladenovic also weighed in on Bouchard’s comments about receiving support for her match against Maria Sharapova. “I did receive a lot of messages before my match against Maria in Stuttgart and also afterwards. In Stuttgart, it was semifinals, the locker room was quite empty, so I didn’t speak to anyone.
“Here, of course I watched their match. I was finishing mine. I saw the last couple games on TV. I mean, this year, I’m in the beautiful locker room upstairs, in the top 16, Genie’s not. I didn’t see her. No, I didn’t, no.”
Mladenovic moves on to face Sorana Cirstea in the quarter finals after the Romanian dispatched Misaki Doi in three sets.
Anastasija Sevastova is through to her first WTA Premier quarter final after a straight sets win over Lara Arruabarrena.
The Latvian had to stave off a fight back from the Spaniard is the first set as her 5-2 lead was brought back to 5-5. Sevastova remained cool enough to restore her lead immediately however and served out the set 7-5. The second set was much more plain sailing for the world number 22 who broke twice without facing a single break point to take the set 6-3 and book her quarter final spot against Kiki Bertens.
The Dutchwoman continued her good run of form in Madrid with another straight sets win, this time against Irina Begu. Bertens took the first set 6-1, but was made to work much harder for the second by her Romanian opponent. Bertens eventually took the set 7-5 and sealed her place in the last eight.
Simona Halep was tested by Sam Stosur but pulled through 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 to set up a quarter final match against Coco Vandeweghe who defeated Carla Suarez Navarro in three sets.
Milos Raonic got his Madrid campaign off to a comfortable start with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Gilles Muller. The Canadian broke once in each set and did not face a single break point en route to the third round where he will face David Goffin. “I have to be happy with it (his performance). I did a lot of good things, created a lot of opportunities.” Raonic said post match. “I did not really face any break points on my service games and did not get behind, so I am very please with my first match given how different the conditions are here compared to last week.”
Tomas Berdych is also through to the third round after a straight sets win over Robin Haase. The Czech took the first set on a tiebreaker 7-5, but the second was much more comfortable and he sealed it 6-3 to set up a match with Alexander Zverev who beat Istanbul champion Marin Cilic in three sets. Grigor Dimitrov overcame the big serve about Ivo Karlovic in a 6-3, 7-5 victory. The Bulgarian faces Dominic Thiem in the third round.
2017 ATP Madrid Preview and Predictions Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic
One of the biggest stops on the road to Roland Garros, Madrid is Spain’s marquee ATP tournament and a joint event with the WTA, here is a complete preview of the week to come at the magic box.
Mutua Madrid Open
ATP World Tour Masters 1000*
Madrid, Spain
May 7-14, 2017
Surface: Clay
Prize Money: €5,439,350
*Joint ATP/WTA Tournament
Top 8 seeds (Who all receive first round byes) (ATP ranking in parentheses)
1: Andy Murray (1)
2: Novak Djokovic (2)
3: Stan Wawrinka (3)
4: Rafael Nadal (5)
5: Milos Raonic (6)
6: Kei Nishikori (7)
7: Marin Cilic (8)
8: Dominic Thiem (9)
Roger Federer, Juan Martin Del Potro, and three of the top four American Men are the only major outs for Madrid this year, a top of the line Masters tournament.
First round matchups to watch:
(12)Grigor Dimitrov vs. Philipp Kohlschreiber
After starting the season hot Dimitrov is in the midst of a slump, having lost four straight. He would love to end it Madrid, and Kohlschreiber, who is similarly underperforming, may be the opponent he can finally get back on track against. Kohli is not an easy out on clay but Dimitrov is simply too talented to keep losing early in tournaments, he should manage to find a way to win this.
Alexander Zverev vs. Fernando Verdasco
Verdasco has a h2h win but Zverev will be coming off the Munich final, and possibly a title there. He’s having a great run on clay thus far this year, and continues to rise, while Verdasco is a shadow of the player he was. Verdasco should be motivated to play in Spain, but as long as Zverev is fresh he will have an advantage in this one.
Tommy Haas vs. Gilles Muller
These 30+ tour veterans have split h2h meetings 2-2, and Haas is probably better on clay. That said, Muller is currently in the Estoril final and has surpassed his win total on clay over the past few seasons, just this year. Haas is 3-3 since returning to tour after a very long layoff, presuming Muller stays in the Madrid draw I actually have him returning to earth and dropping this match.
(9)David Goffin vs. Karen Khachanov
Goffin will look for revenge as Khachanov just beat him in Barcelona. The young Russian has not exited early on clay recently, but Goffin is one of the sport’s top players and has played well in Masters tournaments recently. Goffin is the worthy favorite, but this matchup clearly has upset potential once again.
Albert Ramos-Vinolas vs. Diego Schwartzman
Both dirtballers are in good form and Schwartzman has the h2h edge. Ramos is playing at home in Spain though and as a finalist in Monte Carlo he’s been somewhat better against top level competition than the Argentine, who reached the semis in Istanbul as of late. This should be a close matchup, and will likely go three sets, but Ramos-Vinolas has the edge.
Tommy Robredo vs. Nicolas Almagro
A battle of veteran Spaniards, these dirtballers have plenty of wear on the tires but can still win matches on clay. Almagro, a new father, reached the semis in Estoril and has a big h2h edge while Robredo also has a clay quarterfinal this spring. Almagro should maintain his matchup advantage and win this one.
Top Half:
Andy Murray‘s first tough opponent should be Lucas Pouille, who has won nine of his last ten matches on clay, as neither Marius Copil nor Guillermo Garcia-Lopez are playing well, and one of those players will meet Murray in round 2. Pouille must defeat a qualifier and most likely his countryman Richard Gasquet, who hasn’t been healthy once again, and plays a struggling Mischa Zverev first up. Murray is just 15-5 this season and has struggled under the weight of expectations as world #1, Pouille will have more than a punchers chance in round 3, but Murray, a former Madrid champion, muddled through to the Barcelona semis and should survive a stern test.
Barcelona finalist Dominic Thiem looks set to continue to do damage in Spain, he should ease past Steve Darcis or a qualifier before facing home player Roberto Bautista Agut, who opens with big server Ivo Karlovic, with Dimitrov/Kohlschreiber to follow. This whole section is out of form except for Thiem, and thus Thiem should edge past RBA to reach round 4.
Stan Wawrinka looks set to face Pablo Cuevas, who knocked him out of Monte Carlo, in the third round. Wawrinka will get a difficult match with possible Estoril champion Carreno Busta in round 2 most likely (or a struggling Benoit Paire, his best friend), while Cuevas needs to defeat a qualifier and either Nicolas Mahut or Houston semifinalist Jack Sock, who is still at his weakest on clay, while Cuevas is at his best.
Presuming Zverev defeats Verdasco, we could see a matchup of tour champions of the previous week, that is if Marin Cilic wins Istanbul (he’s currently a finalist), and Zverev wins Munich. Tomas Berdych opens with a qualifier, neither Robin Haase nor Dan Evans are likely to compete well against Berdych, thus Zverev over Berdych is a sensible third round prediction.
Bottom Half:
Novak Djokovic, just 12-4 this season, fired his entire coaching team, dropping the hammer after struggling to regain the world #1 ranking this season. Djokovic, looking for a fresh start, will begin anew against either Robredo or Almagro, difficult but winnable matchups, with Gael Monfils perhaps most likely in round 3. Monfils is struggling as well, but Gilles Simon, Feliciano Lopez, or a qualifier are all somewhat poor as well, thus if Monfils finds some form he should get past Simon and Lopez before falling to Djokovic.
Kei Nishikori will make his European clay court debut this season against the Ramos-Vinolas/Schwartzman winner, while Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who lost his first match in Monte Carlo and hasn’t played since, opens with either a qualifier or Estoril semifinalist David Ferrer, who has had a miserable year. Nishikori over Tsonga seems like the sensible choice here, though form is in question for both.
Tournament favorite Rafael Nadal has four career Madrid titles (Djokovic and Murray both have a pair of titles in the Spanish capital), and should make at least the third round, as both Fabio Fognini and Joao Sousa are struggling. Nick Kyrgios would be up in round 3, as long as Kyrgios, who is recovering from the death of a family member, defeats Marcos Baghdatis, who struggles on clay, and either Ryan Harrison or countryman Bernard Tomic, who both made surprising quarterfinals on clay this past week. Nadal should buzz past Kyrgios given teh circumstances, Rafa has looked unstoppable on clay in Monte Carlo and Barcelona.
The winner of Goffin/Khachanov will face Marcel Granollers or Florian Mayer round 2, while current Istanbul finalist Milos Raonic will look to continue his positive momentum against the Muller/Haas winner. Goffin should edge Raonic on clay given the fatigue factor but that should be one of the matches of the tournament and could go either way.
Dark Horse: Lucas Pouille, Alexander Zverev, Karen Khachanov, and Nicolas Almagro
Pouille has to get past Murray, but he’s in the form to do it, Zverev is playing well beyond his ranking right now on clay, Khachanov has shown great promise and if he gets past Goffin he could also knock off Raonic. Almagro would have to do the unexpected against Djokovic, but perhaps Djokovic will remain in his funk and Almagro will find inspiration.
Predictions
Quarters Thiem d. Murray
Wawrinka d. Zverev
Djokovic d. Nishikori
Nadal d. Goffin
Thiem should be favored over Murray on clay at this point, Wawrinka, Djokovic, and Nadal are the safe picks, not as reliable as they once were, but still favored all the same. Nadal in particular looks great right now.
Semis Thiem d. Wawrinka
Nadal d. Djokovic
A rematch of the Barcelona final would be in order, Nadal is the best clay courter of all-time, and currently on tour in terms of form right now, he should win Madrid.
As our on-site journalist Niall Clarke covered all week, Novak Djokovic’s early loss in Monte Carlo turned into just a blip on the radar, as the Serbian superstar and world #1 continued his winning streak over top 10 players, and beat Andy Murray 6-2 3-6 6-3 in the final, moving his h2h against Murray to a remarkable 23-9. Given they are the world #1 and #2, the gap between the players at the top of the game seems to be widening by the week.
Djokovic was fantastic in the two sets he won, though Murray was valiant, perhaps on a faster surface he could have prevailed, but on clay, Djokovic was simply too fast, and too lethal from the baseline. Counterpunching when needed and getting fantastic court coverage. The final featured a lot of high quality shotmaking and fantastic play from both players.
Djokovic previously beat Kei Nishikori and Milos Raonic without dropping a set, and Borna Coric and Roberto Bautista Agut were unable to do much damage earlier in the week as well. Djokovic is now 13-0 in 2016 against top 10 players, and will head to the French Open as the favorite. He also hasn’t lost a final since the Summer of 2015, and has won five out of the last six Masters level titles.
Murray still had a great week in his own right, moving to 17-4 on the season with wins over Radek Stepanek, Gilles Simon, Tomas Berdych, and Rafael Nadal. Stepanek was his toughest test of the week, but the biggest win was over Rafa of course, as the British #1 avenged his defeat previously in Monte Carlo with a 7-5 6-4 upset victory over the favored Spaniard. Murray has now beaten Nadal twice in a row on Madrid clay.
Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau won their first ever Masters 1000 level title as they knocked off the defending champions Rohan Bopanna/Florin Mergea in the final. With the Bryan brothers in decline, the doubles game has opened up, and we’re seeing some new champions emerge on the biggest stages.
2016 Mutua Madrid Open Day 4 Recap Niall Clarke, Tennis Atlantic
Day four of the Mutua Madrid Open saw two of the top seeds start their tournaments and Juan Martin Del Potro score the biggest win since his return this year.
Embed from Getty Images
Del Potro defeats Thiem
It was arguably the pick of the round one matches as Del Potro defeated the in form Dominic Thiem in straight sets 7-6(5), 6-3. The Argentine missed numerous break points in the opening set but managed to squeeze out the tiebreak 7-5. Del Potro carried the momentum into the second set where he earned an early break. Thiem fought valiantly to try save the match in the final game, but Del Potro hung on to claim his biggest win since his return to the tour this year.
The former US Open Champion had wrist surgery and has been struggling to hit topspin backhands since his return due to the pain. However in this match he noticeably hit more than usual, something he commented on post match.
“I think I improved a lot since my last match in Munich.” Said Del Potro.
“Today I hit it really well. I’m growing up with my backhand. I’m getting confidence with my backhand, too.”
“I need more matches, more progress with these guys to improve that shot. I’m still calm. I can keep patient. I want to be hitting backhands in a good way. Maybe in the second part of the year would be nice for me.”
With Roger Federer’s withdrawal, the draw has potentially opened up for 27 year old who faces Jack Sock in the next. If he is able to get past the American, either Marcel Granollers or Joao Sousa will await him.
Del Potro is only choosing to think about the present though, and enjoying a big victory.
“It’s quite difficult because I was fighting one of the best opponents that I can have.” He added.
“I knew how well I was playing and my conditions these days, and I am missing a lot of what I need be to at the highest level, the level I want to be, because I’ve been through very difficult things in the past years.
“First of all, being in a competition like this, for me, it’s a lot of merit. If I’m able to win matches, even better. Even more emotional. That’s why sometimes it’s difficult to handle the emotions.
“But I think that today I have a lot of joy. I’m very happy. It’s because some great things are happening to me right now. I wasn’t crying because I had to leave or because my wrist were hurting or anything. I was just very happy about it.”
Nadal and others make it through
A packed crowd in Manolo Santana witnessed the successful return of Rafael Nadal to the Caja Magica as he was able to defeat Andrey Kuznetsov 6-3, 6-3.
An early break set the tone for Nadal who went through the match without dropping serve. One break was enough for the first set, then another two sealed the second for a rather comfortable straight sets victory.
Nadal highlighted his serve as an important factor in his win: “I served well in Monte-Carlo and in Barcelona. Here, as I said before, the altitude, perhaps it helps you a little bit so that your serve is a little bit more effective.
“The serve is — depending on which tournament it’s not so decisive, but in this tournament it is. Whoever serves well here is going to do well. I think I have been solid with my serve. I obtained a lot of results. I have to try to keep the percentage up. During the previous training sessions I also served well. This is important to have options to do good. I’m happy and delighted and hope I’ll be able to continue.”
Andy Murray was pushed by Radek Stepanek but the Brit found a way to come through in three sets 7-6,3-6, 6-1. The defending champion acknowledged the difficulty of the victory post match.
“Well, he played very well. I mean, it was not easy. He obviously started the match a little bit better than me. I was playing a little bit too flat, so I think he obviously likes it when it’s like that, when the ball is bouncing a bit lower.
“He was hitting the ball big up the lines. He hit a lot of lines the first set and a half to get himself in a good position.
“In the second set, the game where he broke me, I hit good second serves and he hit like four or five clean return winners in that game. Nothing you could do there. He was just going big and it was going in.
“Third set I started to play with a little bit more height. I was playing a little bit more spin, which made it harder for him. When I was getting the ball up high he started making a few more mistakes.
“Yeah, tough, tough match.”
Nick Kyrgios set up a mouth-watering clash with Stan Wawrinka by defeating Gaudio Pella 7-6, 6-4. Fabio Fognini was also in good form when he dispatched Bernard Tomic 6-2, 6-4.
It was a good day for the Americans as there were victories for Jack Sock and Denis Kudla. Both came from a set down to beat Benoit Paire and Ivo Karlovic respectively.
There were also victories in the men’s for Milos Raonic, Albert Ramos, Gael Monfils, Roberto Bautista Agut, Pablo Carreno-Busta, Borna Coric and Pablo Cuevas.
WTA Simona Halep began proceedings with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Karin Knapp on Manolo Santana. She was followed on court by Carla Suarez Navarro who defeated Sabine Lisicki 6-3, 6-2 despite not feeling well.
“I think I have a cold.” Said the eighth seed.
“But it’s true that when you go out there under the sun you can have a little bit of a headache when you have a cold. Also because all of the drugs that I had before going out there my stomach was hurting a little bit.”
When asked about whether she considered withdrawing, Suarez Navarro replied: “No, no. Here in Madrid I didn’t think about it. But it’s true that perhaps if I had been in another tournament I would’ve quit. I would’ve thought about it. Of course we are in a mandatory tournament, a very important tournament here at home. I would’ve thought about it for sure. At least say, Hey — ask me team, I don’t feel very well. What do you think, guys?
“Being here in Madrid I have never thought about that. It hasn’t come in my mind.”
There was an exit of another seed, only this time it was by default. Lucie Safarova pulled out of her match against Sam Stosur, as did Camila Giorgi. Timea Bacsinszky fought to win a tough three setter with Ekaterina Makarova. Dominika Cibulkova backed up her first round upset over Agnieszka Radwanska by coming from behind to defeat Caroline Garcia 0-6, 6-3, 6-4. Garcia was overwhelmed after suffering the defeat.
Day 3 Recap from the 2016 @MutuaMadridOpen Niall Clarke, Tennis Atlantic
It was a day full of WTA second round and ATP first round action, but the big news is that Roger Federer has withdrawn from the tournament with a back injury.
The world number three skipped practice on Sunday and Monday before calling a press conference to break that news that he had withdrawn.
The Swiss made the following statement: “Yeah, sorry Manolo. Number one, sorry to the tournament for coming and leaving without playing. I arrived and I was okay, and then I practiced on Saturday and hurt my back a little bit in practice and then stopped early. Supposed to practice for two hours; had to stop after an hour 15.
“Then, well, I was scheduled to practice yesterday and today but just don’t feel like I can practice. At this point I don’t want to take more chances as I know I’m not going to be fully ready for Wednesday. I would rather play it safe and rest up now and get ready for Rome.
“So that’s the schedule here now. I’m very disappointed, to say the least. I was hoping to play. I changed my schedule around and practiced well in Switzerland before coming here. This is not really what I wanted to do, come here and do a press conference about pulling out.
“It’s been a tough year, so I hope it gets better from here.”
Federer has had issues with his back before. It was an injury that plagued his 2013 season and caused him to miss the ATP World Tour Finals final against Novak Djokovic in 2014.
“Before the Davis Cup finals it was the most extreme I probably ever had” He added.
“This is normal back things I’ve had in the past, which I guess is good because I know how to handle it. I know how long it can take. Sometimes it can vary by a few days here or there.
“That’s why I’m pulling out today and not waiting until tomorrow. I felt like yesterday already it was probably not going to make it for Wednesday. I wanted to wait for an extra day and do treatment and all that.
“So it’s the back stuff I kind of know, and, yeah, I’m okay with it. At least I know what it is.”
Federer is scheduled to play Rome next week.
Following the first round upsets, many top seeds were in action looking to stray away from suffering a similar fate.
However the trend continued as third seed Muguruza was dumped out in three sets by Irina Begu. The Spaniard came from behind to win the opening set then served for the match in the second, but the Romanian came back to win in three sets to win 5-7, 7-6, 6-3.
Muguruza said post match: “I think the beginning of the match it wasn’t very well. I think I could have started better, but I managed to come back. I managed to fight and find my game.
“But I think it has been a very good game. I think she played pretty well. I played against Begu before “and I think that today she played much better than previous times.
“I think that she served very well. I had to fight everything that I can, but just didn’t go my way this time. I think she’s done an overall good match. That’s all.”
Petra Kvitova continued her good start to her title defence with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over a game Elena Vesnina.
When asked how she found the match the Czech responded: “Good. I won. In two sets. It was nice to be on center court again definitely. It’s a beautiful court, and even I have it to warmup this morning. Felt very special. Felt very great that I could play again on and win it.”
Victoria Azarenka was also victorious in straight sets. The Belarusian, who is perhaps the favourite for the title, defeated Alize Cornet 6-3,6-2 following Kvitova’s win.
But as many of the top seeds managed to avoid upsets, some of the lower seeded players bowed out. Karolina Pliskova lost in straight sets to Christina McHale. Unfortunately from an American perspective, Sloane Stephens also bowed out to Particia Tig. Elina Svitolina was another casualty at the hands of Daria Gavrilova. Ana Ivanovic won the first set but eventually lost to young American Louisa Chirico.
The Serb praised her opponent post match: “She (Chirico) played really well and raised her level. She generated a lot of power and I felt like this court was really taking her spin especially on the forehand. I think I did well to come back and win the first set, but in the second set I don’t think she made any errors at all. In the third set I don’t think I was aggressive enough, and as soon as I became a little bit passive she took advantage again, and got on top of the match.” Madison Keys rounded up a good day for the American’s with a straight sets win over the always difficult Barbora Strycova. The Czech had eliminated Kerber in the previous round.
ATP first round action continues
In one of the matches of the day, Lucas Pouille caused the first upset on the mens side of the draw with a hard fought three set win over David Goffin. The Frenchman saved four match points in the third set to complete the victory in a tense tiebreak.
David Ferrer was in action and needed three sets to defeat Guillermo Garcia-Lopez. The ninth seed had suffered from injury as of late but managed to defeat his compatriot 3-6, 6-1, 6-2. Gilles Simon and Richard Gasquet also won in a good day for the French. Simon needed three sets to defeat Marcos Baghdatis, whilst Gasquet was able to be Roberto Carballes Baena in straight sets.
Feliciano Lopez kicked off the day on Manolo Santana with a three sets victory over Leonardo Mayer. Milos Raonic is also through after a 7-6, 6-1 victory. Denis Istomin, Andrey Kuznetsov, Radek Stepanek, Joao Sousa and Sam Querrey were also victorious.
2016 ATP Madrid Preview and Predictions Steen Kirby and Niall Clarke, Tennis Atlantic
It’s time for the second clay court masters tournament of the season, as most of the world’s top players will descend on the capital of Spain to duel in the magic box. Tennis Atlantic is excited to once again have credentialed coverage from the Mutua Madrid Open, as Niall Clarke will be providing you with reports on the day’s matchplay. Here is a preview and prediction for the ATP side of the tournament.
Mutua Madrid Open
ATP World Tour Masters 1000*
Madrid, Spain
May 1-8, 2016
Surface: Clay
Prize Money: €4,771,360
*denotes joint ATP/WTA event
Top 8 seeds (who all receive first round byes) (ATP ranking in parentheses)
1: Novak Djokovic (1)
2: Andy Murray (2)
3: Roger Federer (3)
4: Stan Wawrinka (4)
5: Rafael Nadal (5)
6: Kei Nishikori (6)
7: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (7)
8: Tomas Berdych (8)
Marin Cilic, John Isner, young gun Alexander Zverev, and Martin Klizan are the only notable players missing from the tournament. Jiri Vesely, who recently stunned Novak Djokovic on clay in Monte Carlo, is also absent.
Madrid features some great first round matchups, and this is certainly one of them. The veteran Spaniard Almagro just won the title in Estoril, and is clearly comfortable both on clay, and in Madrid. He’s experiencing a bit of a career resurgence right now, and would like to keep the momentum going. Borna Coric was a quarterfinalist in Estoril, and also a finalist in Casablanca, as the Croatian young gun continues to steadily improve his standing on the ATP tour.
Given the fatigue factor, I favor Coric to win this, as Almagro is coming off of a three set final.
Leonardo Mayer vs. Feliciano Lopez
Mayer beat Lopez in Madrid last year, and he comes off the quarters in Estoril. Lopez has a semifinal in Houston, and won a round in Barcelona, so while he’s no clay court specialist, he is playing at a home tournament, and has a bit of momentum working in his favor. This should be a close match, as the baseliner Mayer will play a more traditional clay court game, while Lopez will look to be aggressive. This one could go either way, but I narrowly favor Lopez.
Philipp Kohlschreiber vs. Pablo Cuevas
Kohlschreiber is 32, and 7-1 in his last two tournaments, thus his clay court form is great, but he should be on upset alert given the fatigue factor, against an accomplished clay courter in Cuevas. This is a tough first round match for the Munich champion, as Cuevas keeps the ball in play, and is 2-2 in his last four clay court matches, after a strong Golden Swing earlier this season. Cuevas should grind Kohlschreiber down, and pull an upset.
David Goffin drew the toughest qualifier, as Lucas Pouille is nearly into the top 50 at 22, and beat him in Brisbane this year in a huge upset. Pouille is 8-2 in his last 10 matches, and reached a clay court final in Bucharest recently. He’s rapidly improving his game that has plenty of weapons, while Goffin has limped to a disappointing 3-2 record on clay this Spring, and does not appear to be dialed in thus far on the surface.
Goffin was once in great form, and he could still win this match, but a Pouille win wouldn’t surprise me, and this match should feature incredible ball striking.
(14)Dominic Thiem vs. Juan Martin Del Potro
The Munich finalist Thiem is 5-2 on spring clay thus far, and looks to be playing well. I have him making a deep run here, and this match against Del Potro could turn into a mere formality. However, he could be suffering from fatigue after playing the Munich final, and the big hitting Del Potro is slowly finding form. Del Potro won a pair of matches in Munich, and is at least a credible ATP level player right now. The style contrast will be interesting.
Houston finalist Jack Sock is making his debut this season on European clay. Unlike many of the American players, he can play well on the surface, and certainly has a chance to win this match against Paire. The Frenchman has made consecutive semifinals in Barcelona, and Estoril, he’s inconsistent usually, but he’s found form as of late.
Sock will contest this match hard, but I have Paire better on clay, and advancing.
(WC)Pablo Carreno Busta vs. Grigor Dimitrov
A hobbled Grigor Dimitrov suffered defeat in the ATP Istanbul final, and appeared to be extremely upset and frustrated with himself. The Bulgarian #1 is 3-0 against PCB though, and the Spaniard is coming off of his own ATP final in Estoril. PCB played well in Estoril, scoring four wins, three of which came over solid ATP players, and he also has a clay quarterfinal in Casablanca this year.
Dimitrov is 4-2 on spring clay, and should be the favorite, but I’m not sure where his head will be for this match.
Novak Djokovic hasn’t won the Madrid Masters since 2011, and he suffered his first clay loss of the season to Jiri Vesely in Monte Carlo. That was a stunning defeat, but you have to assume the world #1 will recover, and go relatively far in Madrid, if not win the tournament. Djokovic will open with the Almagro/Coric winner, Coric could give him a good test, but he should win that match and then defeat Roberto Bautista Agut to reach the quarters. The Spaniard opens with qualifier Santiago Giraldo with either Mayer or Lopez to follow. RBA is normally solid on clay though he lost in Barcelona, thus he’s the favorite for a third round spot.
Milos Raonic hasn’t lost before the quarterfinals in a tournament this season, he should be able to continue that streak with wins over Thomaz Bellucci, Alexandr Dolgopolov, and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, though Tsonga is by far the toughest opponent of that group. Bellucci has been struggling mightily, Dolgopolov just beat Steve Johnson in a round 1 three setter and is unpredictable, coming off a quarterfinal in Barcelona. Tsonga was a semifinalist in Monte Carlo, where he beat Roger Federer, and he should be able to get past Istanbul quarterfinalist Albert Ramos (or Jeremy Chardy), in round 2.
Raonic beat Tsonga in 2014 on clay, and his strong and consistent play is why I have him reaching the quarters.
Wawrinka’s Quarter
Stan Wawrinka has been in poor form in recent months, most recently dropping a quarterfinal match in Monte Carlo. However, he’s a solid clay court player and a former Madrid finalist. One of the most anticipated matches of round 2 should be Wawrinka against Nick Kyrgios. Kyrgios has reached consecutive semifinals, including on clay in Estoril. He’ll need to defeat Bucharest quarterfinalist Guido Pella first. Wawrinka and Kyrgios have a heated rivalry, though they have only met three times, given this is clay, I give Wawrinka a slight edge to advance, but wouldn’t be surprised if Kyrgios won.
Pablo Cuevas is my dark horse pick to reach the third round, after Kohlschreiber, he’s likely to face Gael Monfils. Monfils has been in great form and reached the final in Monte Carlo, but he has was injured and had to withdrawal from Munich. His opening round opponent Kevin Anderson has been injured himself, and thus he should win that match, but I don’t trust Monfils to consistently be able to post solid performances yet, and Cuevas excels at keeping the ball in play and grinding through matches. Wawrinka or Kyrgios should defeat Cuevas in round three though, Monfils is a bit of a wild card in this section too, full of talented, but wildly varying performers.
Kei Nishikori, a finalist in Barcelona, and a former finalist in Madrid, should be the favorite to win this quarter. Nishikori does not have an easy draw, but he’s reached consecutive ATP finals, demonstrating the tremendous form he’s riding right now. Barcelona quarterfinalist and Munich semifinalist Fabio Fognini is also playing well, and he should dispatch a struggling Bernard Tomic in round 1. Tomic has lost three straight.
Richard Gasquet is set to face Nishikori in round 3, Gasquet opens with qualifier Roberto Carballes Baena, with Fernando Verdasco to follow. Verdasco just beat Juan Monaco in round 1 and took the title in Bucharest. The veteran Spaniard is playing at home, and is in form, while Gasquet isn’t in great form, but his superior talent should get him through the first two rounds, before falling to Nishikori. Gasquet is 6-0 against Nishikori but has never faced him on clay.
Federer’s Quarter
Roger Federer is a three time champion in Madrid, and came off the Monte Carlo quarterfinals after returning from injury. Federer is perhaps the highest seed most likely to exit before the quarterfinals as I have him losing to the talented, and in-form Dominic Thiem. Federer will open with either Joao Sousa or Nicolas Mahut, both players are struggling, and that means Federer should win with ease. Thiem will face the Sock/Paire winner after Del Potro, he could lose that match if he’s fatigued, but his great form has me picking him to go as far as the quarterfinals.
Rafael Nadal has four career titles in Madrid, and is defending finals points here as well. He should easily defeat either Andrey Kuznetsov or Viktor Troicki, most likely Kuznetsov as he comes off a quarterfinal in Barcelona. Nadal against Goffin is my pick for the third round. After Pouille, Goffin will face Pierre-Hugues Herbert, or Sam Querrey in round 2. The qualifier Herbert has been in great form (qualified for all Masters singles draws this season), particularly in doubles, and he could spring a surprise. Querrey reached the quarterfinals in Houston, but is usually poor on clay. Nadal should demolish Goffin or Pouille to reach the quarters.
Murray’s Quarter
Andy Murray is the defending champion, and he has a rather easy draw to get back to the quarterfinals at least. The weakest section of the draw features Vasek Pospisil or qualifier Radek Stepanek as Murray’s first opponent, with most likely Gilles Simon to feature in round 3, though Simon has to defeat veteran Marcos Baghdatis and PCB/Dimitrov first. Simon has never played Baghdatis on clay, and he’s 3-2 in his last five matches on the surface. Baghdatis is normally poor on clay. PCB is an interesting dark horse here, but I presume fatigue will end his march. Dimitrov’s lack of focus should help Simon advance, before falling to Murray, who reached the semis in Monte Carlo, his only stint on clay this season.
Tomas Berdych and David Ferrer are the top seeds in the competitive section above Murray. Berdych is a former Madrid finalist, while Ferrer was twice a semifinalist at home in Spain. It’ll be Berdych against either qualifier Denis Istomin, or a struggling Teymuraz Gabashvili in round 2, while Ferrer opens with countryman Guillermo Garcia-Lopez. Ferrer won both meetings against GGL last year in dominating fashion, GGL has a quarterfinal and a semifinal in recent weeks on clay, and Ferrer has been struggling, but the talent gap is still there. Ferrer against qualifier Denis Kudla is my pick for round 2, Kudla has a recent challenger semi on clay, while Ivo Karlovic snapped a long losing streak to reach the semis in Istanbul in improbable fashion. The veteran likely loses in the opening round this time.
Ferrer and Berdych have a competitive h2h, Berdych did lose in the opening round of Monte Carlo, but I have a feeling he’ll rebound and do well in Madrid with his power game.
Dark Horse: Pablo Cuevas and Lucas Pouille
If you’re looking for unseeded players in the top and bottom half who might make a splash, look no farther than Cuevas, who should face opponents at less than 100% until he faces Wawrinka/Kyrgios round 3, and Pouille, who has to defeat Goffin, and Herbert/Querrey to setup an interesting third round match with Nadal. Nadal and Wawrinka/Kyrgios should both prevail, stopping either player from reaching the second week, but they are both clay court threats.
Predictions
Quarters Djokovic d. Raonic
Nishikori d. Wawrinka
Nadal d. Thiem
Murray d. Berdych
On clay, Djokovic, and Nadal are both clear favorites, though Thiem has a win over Nadal this year, Rafa got him back in Monte Carlo. Nishikori is in better form than Wawrinka, and Murray should have the edge over Berdych given the surface and stage.
Semis Djokovic d. Nishikori
Nadal d. Murray
Nishikori seems to lack the staying power to compete with Djokovic from the baseline, while Nadal is a cut above Murray on clay right now, as he demonstrated in the Monte Carlo semi.
Final Djokovic d. Nadal
A possible preview to the French Open “final” before the final, Djokovic has won six straight against Rafa, including two matches this year, and most of their contests haven’t even been close. Nadal has won two straight tournaments on clay (Monte Carlo and Barcelona), but he did so without facing Djokovic, and until he proves to me that the current Rafa can defeat the current Novak, I have to pick Djokovic to win this title.
WTA Action Starts in Earnest at Mutua Madrid Open 2016 Niall Clarke, Tennis Atlantic
Our Tennis Atlantic journalist Niall Clarke has this report from his first day of on-site coverage in Madrid.
There was an early upset in the WTA side of the draw as second seed Angelique Kerber suffered a 6-4, 6-2 defeat to Barbora Strycova. The German made many uncharacteristic errors and cited fatigue as an issue post match.
“To Be honest I am really tired. I didn’t play my best tennis today and I made a lot of unforced errors. I tried in the second set to find my rhythm and come back, but I was not able to play my game today.”
Roberta Vinci was another upset victim after being dispatched by Danka Kovinic. The Montenegrin took the opening set 6-4 after a long game whilst serving it out. The second set was full of service breaks but Kovinic was able to claim it 6-2 to further shake up the top quarter after Sara Errani’s exit on Saturday.
There was no upsets for the Spanish number one and two as Garbine Muguruza and Carla Suarez Navarro both won on Manolo Santana court. Muguruza won in straight sets 6-2, 7-5, whilst Suarez Navarro came from behind to beat Timea Babos 3-6, 6-2, 6-3.
Karolina Pliskova and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova raced to 6-2, 6-1 victories each at the start of the days play. The Czech will meet America’s Christina McHale in round two and the Russian will face Camila Giorgi. Defending champion Petra Kvitova also emerged victorious in straight sets as did Simona Halep.
There were three British players in action, starting with Heather Watson who lost a grueling two set match to Daria Gavrilova. The Australian eventually pulled through 7-5, 6-4.
Watson said post match: “First of all, coming into this tournament I didn’t have the preparation I wanted, I have been injured, and I only practiced three days before the tournament so I was very happy to get through my first round (of qualification). It was a tough second round of qualies, I thought my opponent played really well. Today I thought I played better than the other matches, but I am just not match fit and I was too inconsistent. I had a lot of break point chances, and we had a lot of games that went to deuce and I struggled to close them out.”
Johanna Konta did not fare any better as she was forced to retire 6-4, 2-1 down to Caroline Garcia. Laura Robson put up a good effort but was overwhelmed by Victoria Azarenka 6-4,6-2.
It was also the last day of qualifying on the men’s side of the draw. Santiago Giraldo was the first to make it through with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Dusan Lajovic. Lucas Pouille joined the Colombian shortly after with a 6-3, (5) 6-7, 6-1 victory over Spain’s Adrian Menendez-Maceiras.
Dennis Kudla secured another American name into the draw with a dramatic three set victory over Benjamin Becker. Pierre Hughes Herbert and Radek Stepanek also qualified with straight set victories. Denis Istomin needed three sets to knockout Mikhail Kukushkin.
The main draw got under way with Fernando Verdasco’s clash with Juan Monaco. The Spaniard was down a break in the opening set but came back to take the match 7-5, 7-6(3). Alexandr Dolgopolov came from a set down to defeat Steve Johnson, 3-6, 6-3 7-6(4).
Andy Murray’s unbeaten clay run continueed as he defeated an error ridden Nadal 6-3, 6-2 to claim his second career title on clay, and his first ever clay masters title in Madrid. It’s his second trophy of the season as well, as he was the victor in Munich last week and is now riding a long winning streak.
The British number one has traditionally struggled on the dirt, but this year has been a complete reverse in fortunes for Murray as he improves his clay court record in 2015 to 9-0.
After defeating Phillip Kohlschreiber, Marcel Granollers, Milos Raonic, and Kei Nishikori on his way to Sunday’s final, the biggest test seemingly lied in the form of Rafael Nadal whose clay court record Is unmatched.
The prospect of facing the king of clay hardly seemed to phase Murray, who racked up eight straight points at the beginning of the match before breaking Nadal at the second attempt. Nadal’s game was ridden with errors, as the ball flew off his racket out of the court or into the net. Murray remained consistent, and barely put a foot wrong as a stunned Madrid crowd watched their hero make some terrible errors.
When serving for the set, the so far rock sold Brit found himself under pressure facing a break point. But he remained true to himself and saved it before taking the first set point. The Madrid crowd tried to inspire Nadal into form with chants of ‘Rafa’ ringing around Manolo Santana. Despite the crowd support, the match wouldn’t get any better for the defending champion. An early break for Murray was followed by a second two games later, and the hopes of Nadal defending title were drifting further than Nadal’s shots. A solid Murray wouldn’t budge as error after error came off the racket of Nadal. La Caja Magica was left stunned as the world number three edged closer and closer to victory. Nadal managed to muster two more games despite his poor form, but any hopes of a comeback were long gone.
Murray went on to successfully serve the match out, and with that claimed his second title in Madrid (he previously won the title when it was played on indoor hard in the Fall.)
This was also Murray’s first victory over Nadal on clay, with all his previous wins coming on hard court. The head to head now reads 15-6 in favour of the Spaniard.
Nadal’s defeat means he will slip to 7th in the rankings, his lowest in a decade. It also puts him in an uphill battle to secure a top four seeding for the French Open, where he will be defending the title. This was his biggest loss on clay since losing 6-2, 6-3 to Gaston Gaudio in Bastad 11 years ago.
“I felt I had a really bad game in the first game of the second set with my serve.” Nadal said post-match.
“I committed a couple of errors, a couple of volleys. I also threw a couple of balls into the net.”
“During every single moment I was fighting and trying to give the maximum. It’s one of those days where things just don’t work out.”
Despite the tough loss, Nadal remains positive about this week.
“Well, it’s been a positive week. I am not going to lie” Nadal said.
“A week before I would’ve signed for these results of course. I’ve played a couple of good matches, especially yesterday’s match.”
“It’s one of the best matches I have played in a long time. So I cannot leave Madrid not happy. I will leave happy and just delete what happened today.”
Murray on the other hand looks like a different player on clay this year. The Brit is unbeaten on the surface in 2015, and the victory in Madrid is his biggest title on clay. With this sort of form on the red dirt, Murray will be considered one of the favourites for the upcoming French Open.
I asked Murray post-match if Amelie Mauresmo had any effect on his clay game.
“I think it’s a big thanks to all my team.” The champion said. “Obviously Amelie, but my physical trainers and physios for putting in a lot of hard work and making some pretty drastic changes to the way I’ve trained and tried to understand my body better so that I could say healthy for longer, and especially on this surface, which I haven’t done the past two or three years. I have really struggled physically on the clay.”
“Yeah, big thanks to all my team for actually accepting, okay, you felt really bad on the clay. What are the reasons for that and what can we do to make you feel better? They’ve done a great job. Yeah, obviously Amelie has been influential in that, but also the rest of my team as well for being brave enough to actually make changes. Yeah I feel much better because of it.”
Murray also believes that consistency was the reason for victory today.
“I think today I was just more consistent.” The Brit said.
“I think in the second set Rafa was starting to play better at the beginning of the second, and middle part of the set. But I stayed strong in that period of the match and he started to make some mistakes at the end that he wouldn’t normally make. That obviously helped me finish the match.”
Murray remains number three in the world rankings and heads into Rome full of confidence after his win. Nadal meanwhile will look to build his form in time for his French Open defence in a few weeks’ time.
In doubles Rohan Bopanna and Florin Mergea took the title over Marcin Matkowski and Nenad Zimonjic 6-2 6-7(5) 11-9.
Tennis Atlantic 