Nadal wary of Alcaraz in clash of generations
Rafael Nadal saved four match points before outlasting David Goffin in three sets to reach the Madrid Open quarterfinals.
Nadal needed more than three hours to win 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (9) in only his second match after an injury layoff.
Nadal’s 1,050th career victory came after Andy Murray withdrew from his match against Novak Djokovic because of a stomach illness.
The fourth-ranked Nadal had beaten the 32nd-ranked Miomir Kecmanovic in straight sets in his opening match at the clay-court tournament, his first after missing six weeks because of a rib stress fracture.
“I knew before I arrived that this was going to be a complicated week,” Nadal said. “Whatever happens now, to win two matches here is fantastic news for me.”
Nadal was up 5-3 in the second set before being broken twice and squandering a couple of match points to allow Goffin to even the match. He also struggled in the third and faced four match points in the tiebreaker. The first was saved with an ace, and Goffin hit the net on the second. On the next two, Nadal needed a couple of perfectly executed drop shots to stay in the match.
“It was an incredible end to the match, but it should have never gotten to that point. I had it under control at 5-3,” Nadal said. “But we know that things are not perfect for me right now, I have to accept that. I fought until the end, it’s what I can expect from myself now.”
The third-seeded Nadal, 35, will next face Spanish sensation Carlos Alcaraz, who was celebrating his 19th birthday Thursday, in a clash of generations that Spanish fans had been craving to see up close.
Nadal has won both matches he played against Alcaraz but said the youngster is in better form entering today’s encounter in what should be a sold-out “Caja Mágica” center court.
“I think that today, he is better than me and he has a good dynamic, a good momentum,” Nadal said. “I think I am a very realistic person, and that doesn’t take me to not believe that I can win or that I can do it, but today I think that Alcaraz is in a better physical state of mind, is more fit. I came here without playing. He’s younger, so he has that extra energy.”
Nadal is the most successful player at the Madrid
Open with five titles.
With Murray’s withdrawal, Djokovic automatically advanced to the quarterfinals — his second of the year after losing the Serbia final last month. He had lost in his first match in Monte Carlo in his first tournament on clay this season.
Djokovic’s opponent will be 12th-seeded Hubert Hurkacz, who defeated qualifier Dusan Lajovic 7-5, 6-3.
Djokovic is also trying to regain his best form after not being allowed to play in the Australian Open because he was not vaccinated against the coronavirus. This is only his fourth tournament of the season.
Andrey Rublev, who beat Djokovic in the Serbia final, advanced to the quarterfinals after a hard-fought 7-6 (7), 7-5 win over Daniel Evans in nearly 2½ hours.
Rublev will next face fourth-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas, who cdefeated Gregor Dimitrov 6-3, 6-4.
Defending champion Alexander Zverev advanced after qualifier Lorenzo Musetti retired with a left thigh injury while losing 6-3, 1-0.
In the women’s semifinals, eighth-seeded Ons Jabeur comfortably defeated qualifier Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-2, 6-3 to advance to the final. The Tunisian is the first Arab player to reach a WTA 1000 final.
The 10th-ranked Jabeur, the only top-10 player left in the women’s draw, had lost five of her six matches against Alexandrova from 2016-2018.
She will face 12th-seeded American Jessica Pegula, who defeated Jil Teichmann 6-3, 6-4 to also make her first WTA 1000 final.
Hendrick secures Byron for 3 years
William Byron agreed to a three-year contract extension with Hendrick Motorsports that will keep him in the No. 24 Chevrolet through the 2025 season.
Byron, 24, has two Cup Series wins already this season and four in his career. He made the playoffs for the third consecutive year in 2021 when he posted 20 top-10 finishes.
He was the 2017 Xfinity Series champion.
• British driver Stefan Wilson spent an entire year hoping to drive in this year’s Indianapolis 500. All he has to do now is qualify.
Cusick Motorsports and DragonSpeed announced they’ve hired the 32-yearold British driver, virtually assuring race organizers they’ll fill the traditional 33-car starting grid.
Qualifying will be held May 21-22. The race is scheduled for May 29.
Ticket requests for Cup final at 3 million
FIFA received 3 million ticket requests for the World Cup final in Qatar and high demand to attend some of its biggest group-stage games.
The data revealed by FIFA shows there have been 2.5 million ticket requests to see Argentina play Mexico on Nov. 26 at the 80,000-capacity Lusail Stadium, and 1.4 million fans hope to see England face the United States the previous day at the 60,000-capacity Al Bayt Stadium.
Overall for the Nov. 21Dec. 18 tourney, there have been more than 2 million ticket requests from the U.S., England and Qatar after the second phase of sales. A random draw will be used to allocate tickets for matches where the demand exceeds capacity.
• A World Cup legal dispute flared with Chile challenging Ecuador’s place at the finals tournament over an alleged ineligible player.
The Chilean soccer federation asked FIFA to investigate its claim that Ecuador player Byron Castillo is actually Colombian and not entitled to have played in qualifying games.
The complaint comes more than one month after South American qualifying ended and Ecuador was drawn into a group with host nation Qatar, the Netherlands and Senegal.
FIFA gave no timetable for a possible disciplinary case ahead of the World Cup kicking off Nov. 21.
Ecuador placed fourth in the 10-nation South American qualifying group to advance directly to Qatar. Fifth-place Peru has a playoff game next month against Australia or the United Arab Emirates.
Chile placed seventh, seven points behind Ecuador, but argues it could advance if games involving Castillo were forfeited.
The FIFA rules in cases of ineligible players require results to be overturned as a 3-0 loss.
Ecuador’s soccer federation issued a statement rejecting Chile’s claims and insisting that Castillo is legally an Ecuadorian citizen.