Djokovic, Nadal battle through in Madrid
MADRID: Defending champion Novak Djokovic and home favourite Rafael Nadal were made to work hard to reach the third round of the Madrid Open on Wednesday.
Djokovic overcame Spaniard Nicolas Almagro 6-1 4- 6 7- 5 while Nadal endured a three-hour epic with Italy’s Fabio Fognini before progressing 7- 6 (7- 3) 3- 6 6- 4.
Almagro, ranked 76th, broke Djokovic in the opening game but the world number two roared back to win six consecutive games, finishing the last with a tidy drop shot.
Spaniard Almagro, who has never gone beyond the quarterfinals in a grand slam, grew in confidence in the second set, however, with the backing of the home support and saved two break points before forcing a decider.
An upset looked on the cards when Almagro broke Djokovic at the first attempt in the third set and marched into a 3- 0 lead but the Serb drew on his experience to battle back, breaking the 31-yearold twice before serving out for the match.
The Serbian, who recently split from his long-term coach Marian Vajda, is trying to regain his best form again ahead of the French Open.
Four-time winner Nadal twice bounced back to win the first set in a thrilling tiebreak.
Fognini played aggressively, however, and forced Nadal on to the defensive as he took the match into a deciding set.
After failing to take advantage of one match point, Nadal emerged victorious thanks to two powerful forehands and the 30-year-old world number five next faces Australian Nick Kyrgios. — Reuters