Impressive Nadal outplays De Minaur
Rafael Nadal reached the third round at the Madrid Open with an impressive straightset win over Australian Alex de Minaur on Saturday.
The Spaniard, 37, won 7-6 (86), 6-3 to take revenge on the opponent who knocked him out of the Barcelona Open 10 days previously.
Five-time champion Nadal is playing on the Madrid clay for the final time, in what he expects to be the last season of his career.
He will face Pedro Cachin next after the Argentine beat American 20th seed Frances Tiafoe 7-6 (7-1), 3-6, 6-4.
“I am super-happy to be competitive against a player like Alex de Minaur,” Nadal told Sky Sports.
“Tennis hasn’t been the issue, it is more the physical issues. If I am able to play tennis, I will see how far I can go. Step by step, let’s see how I recover.”
British No.1 Cameron Norrie recorded a comfortable 6-1, 6-4 win over Brazil’s Joao Fonseca to set up a meeting with Norwegian fifth seed Casper Ruud, who beat Miomir Kecmanovic 6-4, 6-1.
Italian world No.2 Jannik Sinner and Russian third seed Daniil Medvedev both also progressed.
Australian Open champion Sinner,
22, beat compatriot Lorenzo Sonego 6-0, 6-3, while Medvedev came from behind to win 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 against Italy’s Matteo Arnaldi.
However, Greek sixth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas - champion in Monte Carlo earlier in April went
Swiatek breezes past Cirstea
In the women’s event, world N0.1 Iga Swiatek beat Romania’s Sorana Cirstea 6-1, 6-1 to reach the last 16 of the Madrid Open.
The Polish top seed, a threetime French Open champion, needed only one hour and 18 minutes to win a one-sided thirdround match on her favoured surface.
Swiatek, runner-up to Aryna Sabalenka in Madrid last year, will face Spain’s Sara Sorribes Tormo next.
Sorribes Tormo beat former world No.1 Victoria Azarenka 7-6 (7-0), 6-3.
Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur, who has made a shaky start to the season, came through 7-5, 2-6, 6-4 against Canada’s Leylah Fernandez.
Jabeur, who won the Madrid title in 2022, will face Jelena Ostapenko for a quarter-final spot after the Latvian beat Argentine qualifier Maria Carle 6-3. 6-3.
Greek fifth seed Maria Sakkari is also through following a 6-1. 6-3 win over American Sloane Stephens.
Cornet confirms retirement
France’s Alice Cornet has announced she will retire immediately after playing at the French Open for a final time.
The 34-year-old is set to make her 20th consecutive appearance at Roland Garros next month.
Cornet holds the Open era record for consecutive Grand Slam main-draw appearances, having played at 68 consecutive majors since 2007.
She made her WTA debut aged 15 as a wildcard at the French Open in 2005 and has since won six titles over her 19-year career. Cornet, who is currently 107th in the world, achieved a career-high ranking of 11th in 2009.