Rafael Nadal dominated promising 16-year-old wildcard Darwin Blanch to claim a masterful 6-1, 6-0 victory in the opening round of the Mutua Madrid Open on Thursday.
After his tour debut on home soil in Miami, Lefty Blanch made only his second appearance at the ATP Masters 1000 in five weeks.
But his 37-year-old idol Nadal, a 22-time Grand Slam winner and a record five-time winner in Madrid, was in no mood to hand out gifts as he secured victory in just 63 minutes.
Nadal has said numerous times that this will be his last season on tour, but so far it hasn’t gone the way the Spaniard had hoped.
He now faces Alex De Minaur in a rematch of the Barcelona clash where Nadal was beaten by the Australian.
What can you expect from Sky Sports Tennis?
Ahead of the second Grand Slam of 2024 – the French Open in Roland Garros from May 26th – you can watch all the big tennis stars in action Live on Sky Sports as they compete against each other throughout the clay court season.
- Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome (ATP and WTA Masters 1000) – 7th – 19th May
- Geneva Open (ATP 250) – 20-26 May
- Lyon Open (ATP 250) – 20-26 May
- Strasbourg International (WTA 500 with Emma Raducanu in action) – 20-2. May
- Morocco Open (WTA 250) – 20-26 May
Here’s how to watch tennis matches on Sky Sports
The tennis stars will appear daily on the new Sky Sports Tennis channel
Sky Sports has confirmed a new home for tennis in the UK and Ireland with Sky Sports Tennis on Sky and NOW, bringing tennis content to fans all day, every day.
Sky Sports will broadcast more live tennis than anywhere else and over 4,000 matches from more than 80 tournaments per year on the ATP and WTA tours, as well as full coverage of the US Open, all exclusively live.
Non-Sky subscribers can stream live games with a NOW Sports Day and Month membership via Sky Sports Tennis, Sky Sports ArenaAnd Sky Sports Mix Channels.
For further access, fans can also follow their favorite players and gain deeper insights into both tours via Sky sports newsThe Sky Sports App, on SkySports.com and via Sky Sports social channels.
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Watch the WTA and ATP tours in 2024 on Sky Sports Tennis. Stream Sky Sports Tennis and more with a NOW Sports Month membership. No contract, can be canceled at any time.