Mutua Madrid Open, Madrid, Spain, 2024 - Masters 1000

[MargaretMcAleer]

Rafa wins 76(6) 63 well done Rafa !
Rafa fans I havent seen 'the lawnmover' from Rafa since the USO 2013, he did it after he won the TB 76(6)
Rafa will play Cachin on Monday

 

[don_fabio]

Well done Rafa! De Minaur wasn't a toughest competitor today, but he is still highly seeded and this is huge mental victory for Rafa.

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Medvedev came back to win in 3 sets over Matteo Arnaldi 26 64 64

 

[mrzz]

Nobody mentioned it yet, but brazillian Thiago Monteiro played a brilliant match to take out Tsitsipas in straights.

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Another good win by Jakub Mensik 18 yo, defeating Dimitrov (9) 62 67(4) 63! , this is Jakub's 2nd win against a Top Ten player this year ( in Doha he defeated Rublev)

 

[kskate2]

Cam knocks out the Fonz

 

[kskate2]

Nobody mentioned it yet, but brazillian Thiago Monteiro played a brilliant match to take out Tsitsipas in straights.

Yep. That was his graceful loss instead of skipping it.

 

[Fiero425]

Yep. That was his graceful loss instead of skipping it.

That'll happen more & more as the game speeds up & more resources needing to be accessed & utlized! The top players complain about the length of the tour, but it's only a problem for them due to actually winning, making SF/F every time out w/ few upsets! Today's players, esp. the newbies are as fragile as glass IMO seeing them predictably WD from the next event after making a final or actually winning! Since going to BO3 even Fedalovic didn't have to do that as Fedovic won the "Sunshine Double" multiple times! It'll be a rare accomplishment after Novak retires soon unless they go to Next Gen. scoring system!

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Forgot to mention earlier,
Ben Shelton destroyed Tomas Machac in just under 1 hour 60 62

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Good stat for Casper Ruud, who has become the 'First" tennis player to win 30 matches this year, male 'or female, with his 64 61 victory over Kecmanovic.Last year it took him until the USO to get 30 wins!

 

[mrzz]

Yep. That was his graceful loss instead of skipping it.

Tsitsipas had 6.days to rest since the last final he played. TM played the match of his life, he would have taken out 99% of the tour today. But tomorrow is another day...

 

[the AntiPusher]

Well done Rafa! De Minaur wasn't a toughest competitor today, but he is still highly seeded and this is huge mental victory for Rafa.

Did y'all see Rafa run around his backhand at set point to win the TBR. That's a good sign that his confidence in his movement !

 

[kskate2]

Tsitsipas had 6.days to rest since the last final he played. TM played the match of his life, he would have taken out 99% of the tour today. But tomorrow is another day...

True. But he did play 2 weeks in a row, winning MC after being subpar all year. We all debated if he would even make a showing here. He can go to Rome early and get ready

 

[kskate2]

Order of Play for Sunday, April 28, 2024

 

[Moxie]

Well done Rafa! De Minaur wasn't a toughest competitor today, but he is still highly seeded and this is huge mental victory for Rafa.

I don't agree that De Minaur wasn't tough. He's playing some of his best tennis this year, and finally hit the top 10. Plus, he's just what Rafa doesn't need: a guy who will run around and get stuff back as much as he does, or used to. Plus, the last guy to beat him. But I agree that it was the kind of win that Rafa needed. And he says he's very grateful he did it in 2.

 

[Moxie]

Another good win by Jakub Mensik 18 yo, defeating Dimitrov (9) 62 67(4) 63! , this is Jakub's 2nd win against a Top Ten player this year ( in Doha he defeated Rublev)

I only saw some of that, but Mensik is certainly a player on the rise!

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

I only saw some of that, but Mensik is certainly a player on the rise!

Yes he moves and plays well on the clay, indeed a youngster on the rise

 

[MargaretMcAleer]

Did y'all see Rafa run around his backhand at set point to win the TBR. That's a good sign that his confidence in his movement !

Also Rafa was attacking Alex de Minaur's bhand with results

 

[the AntiPusher]

Also Rafa was attacking Alex de Minaur's bhand with results

I'm trying to recall Rafa ever being so excited about a 2nd round victory. Maybe he feels he has his mojo back

 

[don_fabio]

I'm trying to recall Rafa ever being so excited about a 2nd round victory. Maybe he feels he has his mojo back

It was huge for him. He knew if he passed this this test, he most likely gets 2 more matches to play here, minimum. Next Cachin then Monteiro/Lehecka, all beatable opponents. Confidence grows, his movement improves. He is slow to chase dropshots now, the more he plays, he'll get those legs and explosiveness back to normal.