Estoril Open: Cameron Norrie beats Cristian Garin to reach semi-finals
Britain’s Cameron Norrie fights back to beat second seed Cristian Garin and reach the Estoril Open semi-finals.
Britain’s Cameron Norrie fights back to beat second seed Cristian Garin and reach the Estoril Open semi-finals.
Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Andy Murray have all reached the final in Madrid, but do you recall if they’ve all won the title?
The Mutua Madrid Open has crowned eight different champions since Andre Agassi won the inaugural edition in 2002, including three players who have claimed the title on two surfaces.
Introduced as an indoor hard-court tournament, the Mutua Madrid Open transitioned in 2009, joining the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters and Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome as one of three clay-court ATP Masters 1000 events in the spring.
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Main draw action at the 2021 Mutua Madrid Open gets underway on Sunday, May 2. Nadal, Daniil Medvedev, Dominic Thiem and Stefanos Tsitsipas headline the field at the Masters 1000 tournament.
To kick off quarter-finals Friday at the Millennium Estoril Open, Cameron Norrie picked up his fifth Top-30 win of the season with an upset of Cristian Garin. In two hours and 28 minutes, the Brit battled past the World No. 22-ranked Chilean 3-6, 7-5, 6-3.
With a clutch break of serve at 6-5 in the second set, Norrie took control of the momentum and he had a chance to close it out at 5-2 in the third set. He’d serve it out at love in the next game.
“Garin is always so tough on the clay and I think [it’s] one of my best wins ever on the clay,” Norrie said on-court. “It was a battle. He came out a bit sharper than me. I managed to play a good return game in the second set to break there and held my nerve and played some of my best tennis of the week at the 3-2, 4-2 games.”
World No. 50 Norrie has been in excellent form as Friday marked his fourth quarter-final appearance of the year. Garin, a five-time ATP champion on clay, won the crown in Santiago earlier this season. The last time the two had played each other on clay was at Roland Garros in 2013 in the junior draw (Garin won that bout).
Norrie will meet Marin Cilic in the semi-finals Saturday after the Croatian’s highly anticipated clash with Kevin Anderson ended abruptly. Clic had captured the first set 7-6(7) when the South African was forced to retire with a left adductor injury.
Cilic entered the showdown with a 6-1 lead in their ATP Head2Head Series. Though very familiar with each other, the two former Top 5 stars hadn’t faced off since 2017 and hadn’t played a complete match since Cilic beat Anderson on his way to the 2014 US Open title.
The sixth seed just squeaked out the tie-break, saving a set point before converting on his second opportunity with a big first serve. At the changeover, Anderson, who has been dealing with injuries for more than a year, decided to retire. The two-time Grand Slam finalist is currently ranked No. 105. Heading into this week, he had played just three events this year, going 2-3.
Cilic will play his second semi-final of 2021 as he continues the pursuit for his first title since 2018.
Hugo Nys and Tim Puetz needed five match points and a 26-point Match Tie-break on Friday to defeat Raven Klaasen and Ben McLachlan 3-6, 6-4, 14-12 and reach their first ATP Tour team final at the Millennium Estoril Open.
The Monegasque-German team saved two of the three break points it faced and held its nerve in the Match Tie-break to reach its second final of the season at all levels. Nys and Puetz lifted the Biella 2 trophy on the ATP Challenger Tour in February (d. Glasspool/Heliovaara).
Nys and Puetz own an 8-1 record at all levels in 2021. Earlier this month, the pair also reached the AnyTech365 Andalucia Open semi-finals (l. to Behar/Escobar).
[WATCH LIVE 1]Gille/Vliegen Save M.P. To Reach Munich Final
Sander Gille and Joran Vliegen saved a match point in another marathon Match Tie-break to reach the BMW Open final in Munich. The third seeds recovered from 9/10 down in their Match Tie-break to defeat German wild cards Dustin Brown and Peter Gojowczyk 6-3, 6-7(2), 13-11.
Gille and Vliegen are attempting to capture their second trophy of the year, following their title run at the Singapore Open in February. The Belgians will meet top seeds Wesley Koolhof and Kevin Krawietz for the title.
Koolhof and Krawietz were handed their place in the final on Thursday, following their 6-4, 6-3 quarter-final win against Matthew Ebden and John-Patrick Smith. Koolhof and Krawietz advanced to the final by walkover, due to the withdrawal of their semi-final opponents Yannick Hanfmann (neck injury) and Dominik Koepfer.
Jan-Lennard Struff needed three hours and a final-set tie-break to reach his second BMW Open semi-final on Friday.
The seventh seed recovered from a break down on two occasions in the decider and closed the net well in the final-set tie-break to defeat Filip Krajinovic 6-4, 4-6, 7-6(3) on Centre Court. Struff is through to his second semi-final in Munich, seven years after reaching the same stage in 2014 (l. to Fognini).
[WATCH LIVE 1]“It was a very, very hard match,” Struff said in his on-court interview. “I expected a very tough match and a hard fight… In the end, I am very happy that I could reach my second semi-final in Munich.”
With his first ATP Head2Head victory against Krajinovic (tied at 1-1), Struff improved to 11-6 at the ATP 250. Struff is attempting to reach his maiden ATP Tour championship match this week.
The 31-year-old will face Ilya Ivashka for a spot in the championship match. The Belarusian recovered from a set and a break down to eliminate top seed and two-time champion Alexander Zverev 6-7(5), 7-5, 6-3. Struff won his only previous ATP Head2Head encounter against Ivashka last year.
Due to rain, the two remaining quarter-finals will be completed on Saturday. Casper Ruud was leading John Millman 6-3 and Nikoloz Basilashvili held a 5-4 advantage against Norbert Gombos when rain cancelled play for the day.
For those dreaming of getting their hands on authentic Roger Federer memorabilia straight from his closet will have their chance in the near future. On Thursday, the 39-year-old Swiss announced he is putting a collection of personal items up for auction at Christie’s to raise money for his foundation.
“Every piece in these auctions represents a moment in my tennis career and enables me to share a part of my personal archive with my fans around the world,” Federer said. “More importantly, the proceeds will support The Roger Federer Foundation to help us continue to deliver educational resources to children in Africa and Switzerland.”
On 23 June, a live auction will showcase 20 lots (one for each of his Grand Slam titles) with item prices ranging from £3,000-£70,000. A second online auction will be held in July with 300 lower-priced items such as the wristbands from his 1,500th ATP Tour match in Basel.
Items up for auction include:
•The outfit and racquet from his 2007 Wimbledon and 2009 Roland Garros final wins, respectively
•The cardigan he wore while walking onto Centre Court to play the 2012 Wimbledon final
•The shoes from his 2005 Wimbledon final victory
The collection is estimated to be worth £1 million but the end result could be closer to £1.5 million.
Raven Klaasen and Ben McLachlan made it through to their second semi-final of the year on Thursday at the Millennium Estoril Open.
The second seeds claimed 75 per cent of their first-serve points and won six of the final seven points of their quarter-final to defeat Nicholas Monroe and Frances Tiafoe 6-3, 6-7(4), 10-6. Klaasen and McLachlan, who also reached the Santiago semi-finals last month, are aiming to capture their second tour-level team trophy this week.
[WATCH LIVE 1]The 2020 bett1HULKS Championship winners will meet Hugo Nys and Tim Puetz for a place in the final. Nys and Puetz defeated Marcelo Demoliner and Santiago Gonzalez 7-6(3), 6-1 on Wednesday to reach the final four.
Koolhof/Krawietz Advance To Munich Final
Wesley Koolhof and Kevin Krawietz earned their second straight-sets win of the week on Thursday at the BMW Open in Munich.
The Dutch-German tandem needed just 66 minutes to beat Matthew Ebden and John-Patrick Smith 6-4, 6-3 on Centre Court. Following their quarter-final win, Koolhof and Krawietz were handed a place in the championship match after the withdrawal of Yannick Hanfmann and Dominik Koepfer. Hanfmann was forced to withdraw from both the singles and doubles competitions due to a neck injury.
Koolhof and Krawietz will face third seeds Sander Gille and Joran Vliegen or German wild cards Dustin Brown and Peter Gojowczyk for the trophy. Brown and Gojowczyk earned their place in the semi-finals with a 6-4, 6-2 win against second seeds John Peers and Luke Saville.
After their rap song “Drip” welcomed them to the court at the Millennium Estoril Open, musical collaborators Corentin Moutet and Denis Shapovalov faced each other off the mic for the first time Thursday. The Frenchman upset the ATP 250 top seed 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 in two hours and six minutes to move into the quarter-finals.
“It was a very close match,” Moutet said on-court. “Today I’m lucky that I won at the end. A few points decided the winner.”
The Canadian and Frenchman released their rap song together last year, following Shapovalov’s first single “Night Train”.
The victory marks his second Top 20 win of the year (he defeated Grigor Dimitrov in his semi-final run at the Murray River Open). Shapovalov was seeking his first win as a top seed.
After the 22-year-old lefties traded sets, Moutet broke to start the third set. Shapovalov recovered for a 3-1 lead, and then the World No. 14 misfired on a few key moments. Moutet had the win in his sights by reeling off four games in a row.
“It was who will play less worst today,” the World No. 73 said. “I think he didn’t play his best level. I’m really happy to win, of course, because he’s such a great player.”
Next up for Moutet is Albert Ramos-Vinolas as the Spaniard improved to 13-5 on clay this season with a 6-2, 7-6(3) win over Pierre-Hugues Herbert. It marks his first win over the Frenchman in three attempts.
Earlier on Thursday, Cameron Norrie defeated wild card Pedro Martinez 4-6, 7-6(1), 7-5. The Brit is into his fourth quarter-final of 2021 and takes on second seed Cristian Garin next. The Chilean didn’t take the court on Thursday after Richard Gasquet withdrew with a left adductor injury.
British number one Johanna Konta begins her clay-court campaign with victory over Yulia Putintseva in the Madrid Open first round.
Editor’s Note: This story was first published on 4 May 2020
First held in 2002 on hard courts, the Mutua Madrid Open switched to clay and a new venue, La Caja Magica, in 2009. ATPTour.com looks back on memorable moments from Madrid.
2002: The First Edition
In the Casa de Campo, just minutes from the city centre, the Madrid Arena hosted the first edition of the Mutua Madrid Open, replacing a Masters 1000 tournament held in Stuttgart. Built for the unsuccessful Madrid 2012 Olympic bid, the indoor hard-court tournament concluded with then 32-year-old Andre Agassi capturing a then-record 15th Masters 1000 title without hitting a ball. His opponent in the final, Jiri Novak, had torn a groin muscle the day before, towards the end of his semi-final victory over Fabrice Santoro, who had beaten Roger Federer in the quarter-finals.
2004: Model Ball Girls
The Masters 1000 tournament replaced traditional ball boys and girls with female models for the third edition. Given two weeks training, the professional models, aged 19 to 28, were selected from Spanish agencies. Marat Safin, who beat David Nalbandian for the 2004 title, said, “The models mean people are still talking about tennis. Good publicity, bad publicity. It doesn’t matter.” Agassi, the inaugural champion, had initially joked, “It was difficult, to say the least, to concentrate on the ball. But I suppose I had an advantage, I’m used to playing with my wife [former WTA World No. 1 Steffi Graf].”
2005: Nadal Edges Ljubicic For First Of Five Crowns
It was one of the best matches in Mutua Madrid Open history: 19-year-old Rafael Nadal, already a winner of 10 tour-level titles in 2005, coming up against Ivan Ljubicic, who was having one of the best seasons of his career. At a time when Masters 1000 finals were contested over the best-of-five sets, Ljubicic quickly took the opening two sets before Nadal showed great grit and determination to fight back for victory over more than four hours of play. “It is one of the best memories I have of this tournament,” said Nadal, looking back on his 3-6, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6(3) triumph. “I remember that largely because of the support from the public, I was able to turn the match around and eventually win a final.” Now aged 33, Nadal has won a tournament record five titles (2005, 2010, 2013-14, 2017) from eight finals (2005, 2009-11, 2013-15, 2017).
2009: Under New Ownership, Venue & Date Switch
Ion Tiriac, a former player turned billionaire businessman, became the new owner of the tournament in 2009, coinciding with a switch from hard courts to a clay-court event; to La Caja Magica, a multi-purpose stadium with three courts in the Manzanares Park Tennis Center, and a calendar switch from October to May. Ten years on, Tiriac told his native Romanian press that holding the combined event now benefits the city of Madrid in excess of €107 million.
2012: Blue Clay
Keen for innovation, Tiriac proposed to turn Madrid’s red clay to blue for the 2012 edition, benefitting television viewers around the world. While a single outside blue court had been available for player testing in 2011, with capacity crowds inside the three show courts the following year, the blue clay proved to be too slippery and the consistency of the bounce was uneven. Nadal and defending champion Novak Djokovic were skeptical, and both lost early, while Federer went on to lift the trophy with a 3-6, 7-5, 7-5 victory over Tomas Berdych. The Madrid tournament organisers returned to red clay in 2013.
2013: In Memory Of Brad
Two days after the passing of Brad Drewett, the ATP Executive Chairman and President, aged 54, due to Motor Neuron Disease (also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease), stars of the ATP and WTA Tours took to the stadium court for a minute’s silence. Drewett, the former Australian player, had been involved in the sport for more than 40 years. Djokovic said, “It’s devastating news for not just us tennis players, but the tennis world. He was a very brave man with the courage to stand up and try to change some things in our sport for the better. We remember him as a very calm, composed and intelligent man, who loved this sport with all his heart, while he was playing, coaching and then as the President of ATP.”
2018: Santana Hands Over The Reigns
Manuel Santana, a winner of four Grand Slam singles titles, who helped Madrid become a world-class event as Tournament Director, had an assistant in the shape of Feliciano Lopez in 2018. Lopez, who had played in all 16 editions of the tournament, learned the ropes of event management before taking over in 2019. At the time, Lopez was the second active player to be named Tournament Director after Tommy Haas, the former No. 2, was named to the same position for the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells in June 2016. Santana, now the Madrid tournament’s Honorary President. said: “The Mutua Madrid Open is and always will be my home. It took us a lot of hard work to make this tournament happen and I will always be working to help it grow.”
2019: Djokovic Wins Third Madrid Title
Djokovic arrived at the Mutua Madrid Open two years ago looking to rekindle the kind of form that took him to the 2019 Australian Open title. With one quarter-final appearance in his past three tournaments, the World No. 1 beat two-time finalist Dominic Thiem 7-6(2), 7-6(4) in the semi-finals before overcoming Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 6-4 for a then record-tying 33rd Masters 1000 title (with Nadal). “These are the best tournaments, biggest tournaments we have in our sport, in the ATP, of course alongside the Grand Slams,” said Djokovic, who also won the Madrid title in 2011 and 2016. “This is as important and as good as it gets.”
