MADRID: World number one Iga Swiatek beat Wang Xiyu 6-1, 6-4 to reach the third round of the Madrid Open on Thursday as she bids to win the competition for the first time.

Coco Gauff sailed through to the third round with a 6-0, 6-0 thumping of Arantxa Rus, while Liudmila Samsonova ousted Naomi Osaka in three sets.

Runner-up last year, Swiatek bounced back from her semi-final defeat by Elena Rybakina in Stuttgart with a largely comfortable straight sets victory.

The Pole, a four-time Grand Slam winner and an expert on clay, wobbled in the second set as Wang won three games in a row but recovered to triumph in one hour 16 minutes.

“I love this place — I got to know the city a little better last year,” Swiatek said. “So this time I feel more comfortable around.”

Madrid is the only major European clay tournament that three-time French Open champion Swiatek has yet to win.

Swiatek coasted through the first set, breaking twice for a 4-0 lead. She wrapped up it up with another break, leaving Wang no chance of reaching her red-hot backhand return.

The Doha and Indian Wells winner took a 4-1 lead in the second set but Wang fought her way back in for 4-4, before the top seed steeled herself to hold.

Wang then handed the second set on a plate to Swiatek with two double faults, and the Pole will face 27th seed Sorana Cirstea in the third round.

Earlier, Gauff, 20, earned the first ‘double bagel’ victory of her career in a WTA Tour main draw event in only 51 minutes against her 33-year-old Dutch opponent Rus.

The American saved four break points in the match to become the third player ever to win 6-0, 6-0 in the Madrid Open main draw.

World number three Gauff will face Ukraine’s Dayana Yastremska next.

Samsonova brought former world number one Osaka’s return to clay to a halt with a 6-2, 4-6, 7-5 victory.

Four-time Grand Slam champion Osaka twice battled back from a break down in the second set to force a decisive third but world number 17 Samsonova eventually ground out the win.

Japanese star Osaka returned to tennis in January after a long break and earned her first victory on clay for two years on Wednesday against Greet Minnen.

However Russian 15th seed Samsonova, whom Osaka beat at Indian Wells in March, was able to end a four-match losing streak with her victory in two hours 22 minutes in the Spanish capital.

Hard-court expert Osaka, 26, is not overly fond of the red dirt and has not won back-to-back matches on the surface since 2019.

She lost last week at the Rouen Open in France against Martina Trevisan in her first match back on clay but improved this week.

“I felt — I don’t want to say happy — I felt good that I was able to fight back,” said Osaka.

“I think it’s a big difference from my match in France, so I was happy that I learned from that match, but obviously really sad that I lost.”

Samsonova raced into a 4-0 first set lead, breaking in the first and third games as Osaka struggled.

“Honestly, it’s not the sliding part for me, it’s the touch,” said Osaka. “I feel like I’m getting the balls, I’m just not really placing them well.”

Samsonova will face Madison Keys in the next round.

NADAL OUTCLASS BLANCH

Meanwhile in the Madrid Open men’s first round fixture on Thursday, Rafael Nadal thrashed 16-year-old wild card Darwin Blanch 6-1, 6-0 and will face Australian 10th seed Alex de Minaur next.

The 22-time Grand Slam champion broke the American at the first opportunity in the second game before grabbing the first set in just 28 minutes.

Nadal, who last claimed the title on Madrid’s clay in 2017, broke again to take the lead in the second set and kept up the pace, giving a tennis masterclass to Blanch who is still seeking his first tour win.

The age gap between the pair was 21 years and 117 days, the biggest between two opponents at ATP Masters 1000 level.

The American teen committed 27 unforced errors in what was his second ATP tour match after he had made his debut last month in Miami.

“I think today I played against someone with a great future in front of him,” Nadal said. “(But) Today he was making mistakes.

“I tried to be there and be solid all the time without taking a lot of risks. I’m happy to be through and I wish him all the very best.

“For me after how things developed the last few years, every time I have a chance to be on court on this amazing stadium with unconditional support means a lot to me. Trying to enjoy every moment.”

Despite the ease of his victory, Nadal said it did not mean anything in terms of his prospects of competing at his beloved Roland Garros.

“It doesn’t change my perspective on Paris and it will not change here, I’ll make a decision after Rome.”

The win was Nadal’s record-extending 57th victory in Madrid, a tournament that he has won five times.

He will play world number 11 De Minaur in the second round on Saturday.

Published in Dawn, April 27th, 2024