Djokovic fights past Almagro

Madrid, May 10

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Novak Djokovic was made to sweat by Nicolas Almagro in the first match of his Madrid Open defence but eventually overcame the Spaniard 6-1 4-6 7-5 on Wednesday to reach the third round.

Almagro, ranked 76, broke Djokovic in the opening game but the world No. 2 came back with a vengeance to win six consecutive games, finishing the last with a tidy drop shot.

The Spaniard, who has never gone beyond the quarterfinals in a Grand Slam, grew in confidence in the second set, however, with the backing of the home support on the Manolo Santana court and saved two break points before forcing a decider.

An upset looked on the cards when Almagro broke Djokovic at the first attempt in the third set and marched into a 3-0 lead but the Serb drew on his experience to battle back, breaking the 31-year-old twice before serving out for the match.

The Serbian, who recently split from his long-term coach Marian Vajda, is on a quest to regain his best form again ahead of the French Open.

Nick Kyrgios could face Rafael Nadal in a blockbuster third-round clash tomorrow after easily seeing off Ryan Harrison 6-3 6-3.

Fifth seed Milos Raonic is also into the last 16 as he got the better of Giles Muller 6-4 6-4 in a battle between two big servers. Raonic will face Belgium’s David Goffin next. David Ferrer made it into Round 3 without having to hit a ball as Jo-Wilfried Tsonga withdrew with a shoulder injury.

Svetlana Kuznetsova remained one of only three of the top 10 seeds left in the draw with a 6-4 7-5 win over Wang Qiang to reach the quarterfinals. 

Kuznetsova will face the winner of an intriguing clash between top seed Angelique Kerber and Eugenie Bouchard. — Agencies

‘Sharapova’s wildcards driven by media coverage’

The level of media coverage surrounding Maria Sharapova’s return to tennis from a doping suspension has been a key factor in the five-time Grand Slam winner being offered wildcards to events,  men’s world No. 1 Andy Murray said. “I do think the tournaments are going to do what they think is going to sell the most tickets, give them the most coverage, get the most people in to watch,” Murray said. “I’m sure the LTA saw the coverage that was given... and think that’s what’s best for the tournament in Birmingham.” — Reuters

Madrid Open results

Women’s Round 3

Kiki Bertens (Netherlands) bt Irina Begu (Romania) 6-1 7-5; CoCo Vandeweghe (US) bt Carla Suarez Navarro (Spain) 5-7 6-4 7-5; 8-Svetlana Kuznetsova (Russia) bt Wang Qiang (China) 6-4 7-5; Anastasija Sevastova (Latvia) bt Lara Arruabarrena Vecino (Spain) 7-5 6-2    

Men’s Round 2

Pablo Cuevas (Uruguay) bt Nicolas Mahut (France) 5-7 6-4 6-4; 2-Novak Djokovic (Serbia) bt Nicolas Almagro (Spain) 6-1 4-6 7-5; 11-Tomas Berdych (Czech Republic) bt Robin Haase (Netherlands) 7-6(5) 6-3; 6-Kei Nishikori (Japan) bt Diego Schwartzman (Argentina) 1-6 6-0 6-4; David Ferrer (Spain) bt 10-Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (France) walkover; 5-Milos Raonic (Canada) bt Gilles Muller (Luxembourg) 6-4 6-4; 16-Nick Kyrgios (Australia) bt Ryan Harrison (US) 6-3 6-3