Alcaraz dominates European clay debut at Madrid Masters; Nadal v De Minaur, Swiatek, Gauff

Carlos Alcaraz made his debut on European clay, crushing Alexander Shevchenko 6-2, 6-1 in the opening Masters tournament in Madrid.

“I think I did pretty well, to be honest. Last month I just practiced slices, volleys and backhands, so I think that worked really well today,” Alcaraz told ATP. “That’s what I was thinking about going into this match, trying to, let’s say, hit my forehands and be aggressive with my backhand, trying to break the net as quickly as possible. I think I played a really good match in that part.”

Alcaraz had no problems with his hands as he won his 13th match in a row in Madrid and is trying to become the first player to win 3-pointers in the tournament.

“Not at all, but I think about it. I don’t think it will get out of my head,” Alcaraz said of the hand. “I trained well this week, hit harder, but I’m not 100% comfortable playing forehand. But I think playing at this level, I'm very happy about it. I think I can be competitive.”

Other tournament winners included former winner Alexander Zverev, as well as Holger Rune, Andrey Rublev and Taylor Fritz.

In the women's bracket, Aryna Sabalenka also opened her title defense by defeating Magda Linett in three sets – 6-4, 3-6, 6-3.

“It’s not a matter of confidence,” Sabalenka said. “It's about how much you're willing to do to get it. It's about hard work and being ready for the big fights. I feel that confidence will not help you in such important matches. It's about staying there and fighting for it.

“I will say: I will be there, I will fight for every point and if I have the opportunity, I will take it. That’s my mindset heading into this year’s clay season.”

Stuttgart titleholder Elena Rybakina edged Lucia Bronzetti 6-4, 6-3, while Danielle Collins ended the evening with a thriller over Olga Danilovich in the final break of the set. The Serbian served for the match at 5-4 in the third match, but the American prevailed, winning her 13th match in a row.

Rafael Nadal returns tomorrow to take on Alex de Minaur in a rematch of the Australian's victory last week.

Jannik Sinner also opens with Kasper Ruud, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Daniil Medvedev, while the women's third round starts with Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff and Maria Sakkari, who will face Sloane Stephens.

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