Rafael Nadal threw off his headband, raised his arms, and basked in the applause.
Even though it was simply a second-round victory, Nadal might have been enjoying a trophy given where he was a few weeks ago—he wasn’t even allowed to get onto the court.
At the Madrid Open, he defeated Alex de Minaur, ranked 11th, 7-6 (6), 6-3, exacting revenge for a straight-set loss to the Australian less than two weeks prior.
After suffering severe injuries in the last few years, Rafael Nadal has given up on trying to add to his 92 victories. All the 37-year-old wants is to play as close to Rafael Nadal as possible. He is therefore taking each game as it comes, gauging his efforts to prevent an injury that would probably compel him to announce his permanent retirement, with the ultimate goal of competing in Roland-Garros next month.
“I have been through some very difficult months when there were moments when I didn’t see the reason to continue, but I had the dream of experiencing feelings like this again and, above all, at home,” Nadal stated. “It was incredible.”
Football legend Zinedine Zidane, Spanish King Felipe VI, and the boisterous spectators at the Caja Magica supported the 22-time grand slam champion at what will probably be the tennis legend’s final match in Spain.
In his final season, Nadal was participating in just his fourth competitive match following his most recent injury hiatus.
In Barcelona, where Nadal made his court debut after a three-month absence, De Minaur defeated the Spaniard in just eleven days. This time, Nadal had a much better appearance.
Nadal stated last week that he wasn’t feeling well before the event began, adding, “If it wasn’t Madrid, maybe I wouldn’t play.” In order to play at Roland-Garros, he continued, he would need to feel much better.
In the opening round, Nadal defeated American teenager Darwin Blanch in straight sets, but De Minaur faced far tougher opposition, and the tension among the Manolo Santana Stadium spectators was evident.
Both athletes broke the serve twice in the opening set. Subsequently, De Minaur preserved four set points, but Nadal defeated him in the tiebreak to win the set. In the second set, Nadal maintained his lead, broke De Minaur in his opening service game, and sealed the deal.
“I’m incredibly delighted to be able to compete with such a fantastic player as Alex and play for two hours,” stated Rafael Nadal following his first victory over a top-20 opponent since 2022.
“It means a lot to me and the atmosphere here is just a joke, so I can’t thank enough everybody here.”
Nothing less than Spanish sporting aristocracy, After winning his first point, Nadal gave a grunt that was directed more at himself than at his team or supporters. “Vamos!” He shook his head when he hit long, berating himself for not acclimating to Madrid’s high altitude; he pumped his hands after landing his hammer of a left-hand drive; he fought angrily with the chair judge over whether or not he disputed a line call on time.
And the audience went crazy, yelling “Ole! Ole! Ole!” after his backhand winner set up match point and “Viva Rafa!” in between points. To finish himself off, De Minaur double-failed.
With his most recent victory in 2017, Nadal has won a record five times in Madrid.
He will next play Pedro Cachin in the third round following the Argentine’s 7-6 (1), 3-6, 6-4 victory over Frances Tiafoe.
Additionally, top-seeds Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner easily defeated their initial opponents.
Sinner improved to 5-0 against his fellow Italian, Lorenzo Sonego, by defeating him 6-0, 6-3 in the second round. The winner of the Australian Open received a first-round bye.
ranked third, Matteo Arnaldi was defeated by Daniil Medvedev 2-6, 6-4, 6-4. Next up for him is Sebastian Korda.
The 118th-ranked Brazilian qualifier, Thiago Monteiro, defeated seventh-ranked Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4. Tsitsipas advanced to the Barcelona final last week after winning Monte Carlo earlier this month.
Swiatek defeated Sorana Cirstea with ease, 6-1, to advance to the women’s round of 16.
The top-ranked Swiatek, who was defeated by Aryna Sabalenka in the championship match last year, has improved to 26-4 this season. On Monday, she will play Sara Sorribes Tormo, who defeated Victoria Azarenka 7-6 (0), 6-3.
Next month, Swiatek will be competing for a third straight title at the French Open. The only significant European clay tournament that the Pole has not yet won is the Madrid Open.
Along with Madison Keys, the top-10 players Ons Jabeur, Maria Sakkari, and Jelena Ostapenko, the 2022 winners, also advanced. Sloane Stephens’ seven-match winning streak was broken by Sakkari.
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