April 27, (THEWILL)- Rafael Nadal kept his farewell tour alive on Saturday, defeating Alex de Minaur in straight sets at the Madrid Open. The 37-year-old Spaniard avenged last week’s loss to De Minaur in Barcelona with a hard-fought 7-6(5) 6-4 victory in front of a capacity crowd including King Felipe VI and football legends Zinedine Zidane and Vinicius Junior.
Though admitting to ongoing physical issues ahead of the tournament, Nadal dug deep against the world number 11. The 22-time Grand Slam champion battled through controversy in the first set when umpire Fergus Murphy refused to allow a Hawk-Eye challenge on a De Minaur ball called in, despite Nadal’s protests. The Spaniard eventually took the opener in a tiebreak after 1 hour 16 minutes.
The second set was more straightforward as Nadal broke early and never relinquished the advantage. De Minaur battled valiantly but could not create a break point opportunity as Nadal closed out the match on the Australian’s 33rd unforced error.
Nadal downplayed suggestions the win signalled a return to his vintage form, stating: “It needs time. To play over two hours means a lot to me and the atmosphere here is just a joke.” He faces Pedro Cachin next in pursuit of a sixth Madrid crown.
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Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
