Madrid Open: Nadal downs Kecmanovic; Tsitsipas batters Pouille
Number three seed, Rafael Nadal, battered Miomir Kecmanovic in straight sets in the round of 32 at the 2022 Madrid Open. Nadal beat the Serbian 6-1, 7-6(4) on Wednesday to advance into the third round. Number four seed Stefanos Tsitsipas beat Lucas Pouille 6-3, 6-4 to progress further. He will face Grigor Dimitrov in the round of 16. Here's more.
A look at Nadal's numbers against Kecmanovic
Nadal hit three aces, winning 72 points, and sealing a tie-break. He has now extended his lead over Kecmanovic by 2-0 in ATP head-to-head series.. Nadal now enjoys a 21-1 win-loss record in 2022. The five-time Madrid Open winner will next face qualifier David Goffin. The latter beat Botic van de Zandschulp 6-4, 6-2 in straight sets.
Every comeback is different: Nadal
Nadal talked about his comeback and even lauded Kecmanovic's efforts. "Every comeback is different. We had to put all circumstances together to analyse every single comeback, and today has been a very important match for me, playing at home on clay against a player that has been playing well for the past couple of months," said Nadal in the post-match conference.
Tsitsipas breezes past Pouille
Stefanos Tsitsipas beat wildcard Lucas Pouille in the round of 32. Notably, he has become the first man to claim 25 ATP Tour match wins in 2022. He has an 8-1 win record on clay this season (31-6 since 2021). Tsitsipas will be up against Grigor Dimitrov in the round of 16. Earlier, Dimitrov beat number 13 seed Diego Schwartzmann 6-0, 6-3.
Key results in men's singles
Cameron Norrie overcame John Isner 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-4. Carlos Alcaraz thumped Nikoloz Basilashvili 6-3, 7-5. Andrey Rublev beat Jack Draper 2-6, 6-4, 7-5. Hubert Hurkacz beat Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 6-4, 4-6, 7-6(5). Felix Auger-Aliassime beat Cristian Garin 6-3, 6-0. Lorenzo Musetti downed Sebastian Korda 6-4, 6-3. Alexander Zverev beat Marin Cilic 4-6, 6-4, 6-4. Dusan Lajovic overcame Casper Ruud 7-6(7), 2-6, 6-4.
Sinner achieves 100th tour-level win
Jannik Sinner beat Alex de Minaur 6-4, 6-1 to capture his 100th tour-level win. He enjoys a 4-0 win record against Minaur in ATP match-ups. Sinner pocketed his maiden tour-level win at the Hungarian Open (April 2019). Since then, Sinner has claimed the 2019 Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals, and five ATP tour titles. He even breached the Top 10 (ATP Rankings).
