Tennis News

While it appeared as though two of the tour’s top competitors were en route to another blockbuster final on clay, both Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams were handed similar losses in their semi-final matches to make room for the surprise final at the Mutua Madrid Premier event, as the new final now features Petra Kvitova and Svetlana Kuznetsova. Kvitova leads the head-to-head series 3-1, although has also lost their only previous clay court meeting – their last meeting on the tour at the 2014 French Open.

In undoubtedly the biggest upset in recent memory, Serena Williams had her incredible win streak snapped in Madrid on Friday afternoon when she suffered a straight sets loss to Petra Kvitova in the semi-final round. Kvitova’s 6-2, 6-3 win against the American ended her 27-match win streak from 2014, as well as her incredible 3+ year streak at Premier events.

“Yeah, I think she just played well today,” Williams said. “I mean, she went for broke on every serve, every return. I hit some second serves, 170, 175, and she just hit them for winners. I was very slow off the mark. After my serve I wasn’t moving as well as I should have. You know, I wasn’t in it.

“I wasn’t Serena today. I think that was the main thing.”

Earlier in the day, Svetlana Kuznetsova began the day’s trend of massive upsets, as she comfortably ousted defending champion Maria Sharapova in straight sets to secure her spot in the final. She defeated her fellow Russian 6-2, 6-4 in a surprisingly straightforward affair. While Sharapova had her opportunity in the second set, she was unable to capitalize.

“I feel very happy, it was a very tough match,” Kuznetsova said. “I was playing good, serving good – everything was working well.”

This is set to be the fifth time that Kvitova and Kuznetsova will cross paths on the professional tour, with the Czech No. 1 leading the head-to-head series 3-1. However, it is the Russian who won their most recent encounter, one that took place in the third round of last year’s French Open event. Given that Kuznetsova holds a win against Kvitova in their only clay court encounter, it should add an extra layer of intrigue ahead of Saturday’s final.

Seeded third at this year’s event, multi-time champion Rafael Nadal advanced to the quarter-final stage of the tournament with a straight sets win against Simone Bolelli. He defeated his Italian adversary 6-2, 6-2, in a match where he struck two aces, won 76% of his first service points, and saved both break points faced during the match. He eventually brought an end to the proceedings in 62 minutes of court time.

The Spaniard will next encounter Grigor Dimitrov, who had a longer match in his ousting of Stan Wawrinka on Thursday afternoon. He withstood seven aces, won 79% of his first service points and saved 10 of 12 break points to close out the match 7-6(5), 3-6, 6-3 in two hours of court time.

“I know what to expect from him and we all know what I’m going to put out there on the court, which is going to be a great performance,” said Dimitrov. “It’s one of those days where I really want to be out there on the court, playing against him on clay. I feel like I have been playing good tennis, so why not go out there and have fun, but at the same time, I know why I’m out there.”

While these two competitors have crossed paths on five previous occasions, this is set to be their first encounter on the tour in 2015. Nadal leads the head-to-head series 5-0, including a win on clay in 2013. However, while Nadal holds an unblemished record against Dimitrov, he is currently at his most inconsistent in recent memory and that could make for an exceptionally entertaining match.

While not given the best of schedules this week on the tour, Andy Murray will continue his quest for a 10th Masters 1000 title when he meets Milos Raonic on Friday afternoon in Madrid. Of their five previous meetings on the ATP World Tour, Raonic leads the head-to-head series 3-2.

Although he had to deal with rain delays in Munich and a final that took place on Monday, Murray found himself with more concerns in Madrid, where he was forced to play his first match well into the early hours of the morning. However, after dispatching Philipp Kohlschreiber in three sets, he breezed past Marcel Granollers 6-2, 6-0 to advance to the quarter-final stage of the tournament. He won 79% of his first service points and saved the only break points he faced to close out the match in one hour and four minutes.

“I wanted to try and start the match with as much energy as possible, and if I could, get off to a lead early,” said Murray. “Obviously, he played a very long match yesterday [versus Gael Monfils], so I felt like if I could get ahead that I would be able to use that momentum well. It would also give me a bit of a lift really.”

Murray will next encounter his Canadian adversary after Raonic beat Leonardo Mayer 6-4, 6-3. He struck 11 aces, won 82% of his first service points and saved all three of the break points he faced to close out the match in one hour and 18 minutes.

This marks the sixth time that these two competitors will meet on the professional tour, with Raonic leading the series 3-2. The Canadian has also won two of their three most recent encounters. Both players will be motivated to keep their hopes alive in the tournament, and will be determined not to lose. It should also be noted that Raonic won their only clay court meeting.

A fantastic semi-final clash between top ranked Serena Williams and Czech No. 1 Petra Kvitova is scheduled to take place on Friday afternoon at the Mutua Madrid Open. Williams remains perfect against Kvitova, as she holds an impeccable 5-0 head-to-head record dating back to 2010.

The world No. 1 maintained her unblemished streak against Carla Suarez Navarro with her sixth straight win against the Spaniard on Thursday. In fact, she was just as dominant as always and won the contest 6-1, 6-3 to halt the 10th seeds advancement in the tournament. Williams has now won 27 consecutive matches.

“I learned a lot from yesterday,” Williams said. “I just really have to stay focused. I had a lot of opportunities in that match – I probably should have closed it out in two sets. But Victoria, she’s really such a great fighter. Still, I had an opportunity to stay calm and win a few points here and there.”

“I approach everything as I want to do the best that I can,” Williams said. “I’m so determined for every single point. If I lost the match, it’s okay, as long as I know I gave the best I could on that day.

Petra Kvitova also needed just straight sets to advance to the quarter-final stage in Madrid, as she defeated Irina-Camelia Begu 7-5, 6-3. She struck two aces, won 85% of her first service points and converted three break points to secure the win in one hour and 32 minutes.

This marks the sixth time these two competitors will meet on the professional tour, with Williams holding an undefeated 5-0 record. This is their first ever meeting on clay, and while that could lead to a tighter contest, it will still heavily favour the top ranked American.