MADRID — Rafael Nadal has not performed his final match earlier than his house followers.
The 22-time Grand Slam champion beat Alex de Minaur 7-6 (6), 6-3 within the second spherical of the Madrid Open on Saturday, avenging a loss to the Australian lower than two weeks in the past.
Nadal, 37, was cheered on by Spanish King Felipe VI, Zinedine Zidane and a raucous crowd that packed the Caja Magica to see what is going to almost definitely be the tennis nice’s final match in Spain.
Nadal was enjoying simply his fourth aggressive match since his newest damage layoff. Decimated by accidents lately, he has stated that is almost definitely his farewell yr on the tour.
The Eleventh-ranked De Minaur beat Nadal 7-5, 6-1 simply 11 days earlier than in Barcelona, the place the Spaniard returned to the courts for the primary time in additional than three months. Nadal seemed significantly better this time round.
Nadal’s final aim is to be aggressive one final time at subsequent month’s French Open, the place he’s a report 14-time champion.
High-seeded Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek brushed apart their first opponents.
Sinner downed fellow Italian Lorenzo Sonego 6-0, 6-3 within the second spherical to enhance to 5-0 in opposition to his countryman. The Australian Open champion had a first-round bye.
“I do know Lorenzo fairly effectively. We’ve a superb friendship off the courtroom, we play Davis Cup collectively, we apply so much collectively,” Sinner stated. “He did not play at his finest. I want him all the very best for the remainder of the season.”
Sinner will subsequent face Jordan Thompson or Pavel Kotov. He’s chasing his fourth title of the season after profitable at Melbourne Park and in Rotterdam and Miami – all hard-court occasions. Simply one in all his 13 profession titles has come on clay, in 2022 on the Croatia Open.
Swiatek, likewise, made fast work of Sorana Cirstea 6-1, 6-1 to succeed in the ladies’s final 16.
The highest-ranked Swiatek, who misplaced final yr’s remaining to Aryna Sabalenka, improved her report this season to 26-4. She is going to subsequent face Sara Sorribes Tormo on Monday after the Spaniard ousted Victoria Azarenka 7-6 (0), 6-3.
Swiatek is getting ready to make a run for a 3rd consecutive title on the French Open subsequent month. She is a three-time champion at Roland Garros (2020, ’22, ’23). The Madrid Open is the one main European clay match the Pole has but to win.
Fifth-seeded Maria Sakkari ended Sloane Stephens‘ seven-match profitable run by 6-1, 6-3.
Ninth-seeded Jelena Ostapenko beat Argentine qualifier Maria Lourdes Carle 6-3, 6-3.
On the lads’s facet, Brazilian qualifier Thiago Monteiro upset Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 6-4 within the second spherical.
The seventh-ranked Tsitsipas fell to Monteiro, ranked 118th, after having run up a 10-1 report on clay going into the match. Tsitsipas received Monte Carlo this month earlier than reaching the ultimate of Barcelona final week.
“I had an excellent opponent on the opposite facet of the online,” Tsitsipas stated. “He was developing with nice photographs and punishing me each single time I performed quick.”
Sebastian Korda and Jiri Lehecka additionally superior.
