In the wake of Rafael Nadal
Jack Draper is a semi-finalist at the 2025 Mutua Madrid Open. The Englishman defeated Matteo Arnaldi with a convincing 6-0, 6-4. In the blink of an eye the 23-year-old had served the Italian a bagel in the first set. However, the second was a closer affair and Arnaldi managed to hold his serve twice, but […]
Gauff dethrones Swiatek in Madrid
When the clock in the Manolo Santana Stadium showed that the Mutua Madrid Open semifinal between Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff had been underway for 50 minutes, the Pole was sitting on her chair with a towel draped over her face. Something was seriously awry with her game: the scoreboard read an unthinkable 6-1, 3-0, […]
Casper Ruud’s 40 greatest hits
Thursday 1 May was circled in red on the Mutua Madrid Open calendar. It is a bank holiday in Spain, some classy tennis is in store and the sky is starting to clear after Wednesday’s rain. The Caja Magica was ready to entertain and the first match of the day did not disappoint. Norway’s Casper […]
Qinwen Zheng and the Spanish ‘balance’: “You enjoy life and you’re good athletes”
Qinwen Zheng has been living in Spain for almost six years. The Chinese player moved to Barcelona to start working under Pere Riba, her coach, who has shaped her into one of the best tennis players in the world. During her time at the Mutua Madrid Open, Zheng visited the set of ‘Iguales’, the tournament’s […]
Sabalenka can dig deep too
After 84 minutes of gritty tennis Aryna Sabalenka and Marta Kostyuk had barely finished their closely-contested first set in what was one of the clashes of the 2025 Mutua Madrid Open so far. The second was not far behind at 68 minutes for a total match time of 2 hours and 32 minutes in a […]
Local hopes rest on one man’s shoulders
The quarterfinals in the men’s doubles are now set in stone, as are the semis in the women’s team competition at the 2025 Mutua Madrid Open. As ever, the doubles is giving fans in the Caja Magica plenty to shout about as they enjoy the fireworks. The women’s competition will not see another home winner […]
Jack Draper, happy to be called the favourite
The absence of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz and the subsequent elimination of Alexander Zverev, Novak Djokovic and Taylor Fritz mean the new favourite at the Mutua Madrid Open is someone who is not particularly comfortable on clay. However, Jack Draper is more than happy to be called the favourite and is starting to play […]
Corría el minuto 23 y había que frotarse los ojos…
Disbelief after 23 minutes of tennis… There were just 23 minutes on the clock when Iga Swiatek approached the umpire’s chair to ask for a bathroom break. A few spectators were entering the court at that point and they could not believe their eyes. In the Mutua Madrid Open quarterfinals and on one of her […]
Ruud awakening in the Caja Magica
It could be said that he is not the most spectacular player on tour. Perhaps he doesn’t win as many titles as some of his adversaries. Maybe he doesn’t make so many appearances in the trick-shot reels. But there is absolutely no doubt that Casper Ruud is a hugely talented player. The Norwegian comes into […]
Madrid lover Cerúndolo chasing a dream in the Caja Magica
For a moment it was as if the Manolo Santana Stadium had teleported to the heart of Buenos Aires. Surrounded by stands that were peppered with sky-blue and white flags and chants not unlike those that might ring around the Bombonera, Francisco Cerúndolo claimed a big scalp to earn his ticket to the quarterfinals of […]