Rafael Nadal (ATP 512) advanced without difficulty to the 2nd round of the ATP Masters 1000 tennis tournament in Madrid, Thursday in Spain. His 16-year-old guest opponent, the American Darwin Blanch (ATP 1,028), lost 6-1, 6-0 in just over an hour.
Overwhelmed by the stakes, Blanch failed to express himself in the game. He was making his second appearance at this level, after being invited to the Masters 1000 in Miami last month. He then lost against the Czech Tomas Machac, 6-4, 6-2.
Nadal is looking for thrills as Roland-Garros approaches. The Parisian Grand Slam will begin on May 20. Fourteen-time winner at Porte d’Auteuil, Rafael Nadal (37) declared on Wednesday that he would only play at Roland-Garros if he felt “ready enough”.
Roland-Garros will not give Rafael Nadal any gifts: “It is not an option that is on the table”
In the 2nd round of the Madrid Masters, the Bull of Manacor will face the Australian Alex De Minaur (ATP 11/N.10). The latter had beaten the Spaniard in the 2nd round of the Barcelona Masters, a little over a week ago.
The Frenchman Richard Gasquet (ATP 116), a contemporary of Rafael Nadal from the 1986 generation, was beaten in his 1000th match on the ATP circuit. He lost in the first round of the Madrid tournament against the Italian Lorenzo Sonego (ATP 52), 6-2, 7-5.
Gasquet (37) was out of the qualifying table. He is now one of four active players to reach 1,000 matches played. Only Novak Djokovic (1315), Rafael Nadal (1294) and Fernando Verdasco (1006) have played more than him
Twenty-two years passed between his first match played on the circuit in 2002, at age 15, and his 1000th face-to-face on Thursday. He won 604 and won 16 titles.
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