Wawrinka Wins Thriller Over Cressy At Madrid Masters; Murray, Thiem Thursday
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On a busy opening day for the men at the Madrid Masters, while there were no seeds in action there was plenty of drama.
Former finalist Stan Wawrinka won a thriller over Maxime Cressy 6-7(3-7), 6-3, 7-6(7-4). The Swiss was powered by 19 aces to just one double fault in the two hour, 27 minute win. There were no break points in the third set!
I’m super happy, I was expecting a really tough match,” Wawrinka said to the ATp. “First time playing against him, he’s a tough player, putting a lot of pressure, especially in fast conditions. It’s not easy to control the game, [not] a lot of rallies. I was staying calm and tried to be aggressive as I could on my serve. It’s great to win that battle.”
On Friday, the 38-year-old will meet Monte Carlo winner Andrey Rublev.
Wawrinka will next meet Monte-Carlo champion Andrey Rublev for the first time since the 2020 Rolex Paris Masters. The Swiss leads their ATP Head2Head 2-1.
“It’s going to be a completely different matchup,” Wawrinka said looking ahead. “Second round also, I have a match under my legs. I think I can play well, I’ve played him a few times already in my career. He’s in top form, it’s going to be a tough battle, but a great challenge for me. That’s the reason I keep playing, to play the top players and try to beat them.”
Alexander Bublik advanced to a meeting with Holger Rune by easing past Daniel Elahi Galan 7-6(15), 6-7(4), 6-4. The 17-15 first set breaker lasted 25 minutes, the longest on tour this year.
Elsewhere, Hugo Grenier ousted the struggling Diego Schwartzman 7-5, 6-4. Emil Ruusuvuori of Finland eliminated Ugo Humbert of France 7-6(8-6), 7-6(7-4).
Also, Spain’s Roberto Carballes Baena toppled David Goffin 6-4, 6-4. (35y,50r). Albert Ramos-Vinolas advanced past Ilya Ivashka 4-6, 7-6(7-3), 6-2. Slovakia’s Alex Molcan sent out Yibing Wu 6-2, 6-4. France’s Gregoire Barrere defeated Emilio Nava 6-0, 5-7, 6-3.
Quentin Halys, Hugo Gaston and Richard Gasquet were winners as well.
On Thursday, the first round wraps up with former champion Andy Murray returning to face Andrea Vavassori. Dominic Thiem is also in action against Kyle Edmund.
THURSDAY MADRID MASTERS SCHEDULE
MANOLO SANTANA STADIUM
Starting At: 11:00 am
ATP [PR] Kyle EDMUND (GBR)vs [WC] Dominic THIEM (AUT)
Not Before 1:00 PM
WTA Coco Gauff (USA) [6] vs Kaia Kanepi (EST) or [Q] Irene Burillo Escorihuela (ESP)
WTA Elisabetta Cocciaretto (ITA) vs Paula Badosa (ESP) [26]
Not Before 4:30 pm
ATP [Q] Andrea VAVASSORI (ITA) vs Andy MURRAY (GBR)
Not Before 7:00 PM
WTA Sorana Cirstea (ROU) vs Aryna Sabalenka [2]
ARANTXA SANCHEZ STADIUM
Starting At: 11:00 am
WTA Jule Niemeier (GER) vs Petra Kvitova (CZE) [10]
ATP Cristian GARIN (CHI) vs Marc-Andrea HUESLER (SUI)
ATP Lorenzo SONEGO (ITA) vs [LL] Jan-Lennard STRUFF (GER)
Not Before 5:00 PM
WTA Caroline Garcia (FRA) [5] vs Yulia Putintseva (KAZ)
ATP Mackenzie MCDONALD (USA) vs Bernabe ZAPATA MIRALLES (ESP)
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