Saturday features second round ATP singles matches, and third round WTA singles matches.
A week ago in Barcelona, Rafael Nadal lost in straight sets to Alex de Minaur. On Saturday in Madrid, Nadal will try to avenge that loss, as he struggles to rediscover his form due to injury.
Other action on Saturday features the top seeds from both singles draws: Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner. Plus, back-to-back finalists from ATP events the last two weeks, Casper Ruud and Stefanos Tsitsipas, will play their opening matches in Madrid. And US Open champion Coco Gauff takes on recent Australian Open semifinalist Dayana Yastremska.
Each day, this preview will analyze the two most intriguing matchups, while highlighting other notable matches on the schedule. Saturday’s play gets underway at 11:00am local time.
Alex de Minaur (10) vs. Rafael Nadal (PR) – Not Before 4:00pm on Manolo Santana Stadium
In Barcelona, Nadal was able to make the first set extremely competitive, losing it 7-5. But once de Minaur captured the first set, he settled in and easily took the second 6-1. Overall Rafa leads Alex 3-2, but their last two meetings have now both gone to the Australian, with the other taking place during last year’s United Cup. On that day in Sydney, de Minaur prevailed 7-5 in the third, after coming back from a set and a break down.
Alex recently became a new member of the top 10, and is 23-8 this season, with a hard court title in Acapulco. Nadal earned an extremely comfortable victory on Thursday, over inexperienced IMG wild card Darwin Blanch, though that’s just Rafa’s fourth win since January of 2023.
On Saturday, de MInaur must be favored to defeat Nadal for a second consecutive week. While favoring anyone against The King of Clay on this surface is always a risky proposition, Rafa is currently not as big a threat due to his weakened state.
Coco Gauff (3) vs. Dayana Yastremska (31) – Not Before 8:00pm on Manolo Santana Stadium
Gauff is 20-6 on the year, though she’s gone just 10-6 after a 10-0 start to the season. And she’s only 4-3 lifetime in Madrid, after a decisive 6-0, 6-0 victory on Thursday over Arantxa Rus. But Coco is a formidable player on clay, where she has reached two WTA finals, including Roland Garros in 2022.
23-year-old Yastremska came through qualifying at this past January’s Australian Open and went all the way to the semifinals, defeating three seeded players along the way (Vondrousova, Navarro, Azarenka). However, Dayana has a losing record since leaving Australia, as well as a losing record on clay in her career at tour level. In the first round, she recovered from losing a 6-0 first set to defeat Emiliana Arango in three.
This is the first of what could be many matchups between these two young standouts in their early-20’s. And it’s a matchup in which Gauff is a considerable favorite to advance.
Other Notable Matches on Saturday:
Iga Swiatek (1) vs. Sorana Cirstea (27) – Swiatek’s victory on Thursday was her 24th straight-set win of the season. Cirstea is a modest 10-9 on the year, and she’s 0-3 against Iga.
Thiago Monteiro (Q) vs. Stefanos Tsitsipas (6) – Tsitsipas dropped out of the top 10 earlier this year due to subpar results, but has already returned after two strong clay court results: winning Monte Carlo and reaching the final in Barcelona. Monteiro is an accomplished clay court player, whom Stefanos has never faced before.
Jannik Sinner (1) vs. Lorenzo Sonego – Sinner is an excellent 25-2 in 2024, though he’s coming off a three-set loss in the semifinals of Monte Carlo to Tsitsipas. Jannik is 4-0 against fellow Italian Sonego.
Sloane Stephens (5) vs. Maria Sakkari (5) – Sakkari had a comfortable victory over Donna Vekic on Thursday. Stephens has already survived two three-set matches this week, and was the champion a week ago in Rouen. Maria claimed their only prior meeting in three sets, two years ago in Toronto.
Daniil Medvedev (3) vs. Matteo Arnaldi – Clay is still not Medvedev’s favorite surface, but he went 10-3 on it in 2023, and won the Masters 1000 event in Rome. Arnaldi is a 23-year-old Italian on the verge of breaking into the top 30, but he’s 0-2 against Daniil.
Miomir Kecmanovic vs. Casper Ruud (5) – Like Tsitsipas, Ruud made the final of both Monte Carlo and Barcelona, winning in Barcelona. He has split four previous matches with Kecmanovic at all levels, though both of Casper’s wins have come on clay.
Saturday’s full Order of Play is here.
