Raducanu advances in Madrid; Alcaraz credits Wimbledon success to partying hard in Ibiza
Emma Raducanu's return to the WTA Tour began with a hard-fought win over Dutch opponent Suzan Lamens in the Madrid Open first round.
The British number two, playing competitively for the first time in almost a month, ground out a 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 victory on the clay.
Raducanu trailed by a break in each set before instantly recovering and edged the bigger points to secure victory.
'I know I had to play really well to win and although it wasn't always my best, I got stuck in at the right moments,' Raducanu said.
Raducanu took a 'physical and mental' break from competitive action after reaching the Miami Open quarter-finals last month, instead opting for a 10-day training block in Los Angeles.
The world number 49 spent the time there working with Mark Petchey, who is coaching her on an informal basis and was watching as she beat Lamens in her first clay-court appearance of the season.
Raducanu, 22, will play Ukrainian 24th seed Marta Kostyuk in the second round.
Anastasija Sevastova's comeback from maternity leave has been a tough road. The former World No. 11 gave birth to daughter Alexandra in December 2022 and returned to the tour in November 2023 after a 22-month break.
Though she reached quarter-finals in her first four events, her progress was halted by an ACL injury in Austin, leading to another 14-month layoff.
Now unranked, Sevastova resumed competition at an ITF W75 in Koper, Slovenia, reaching the second round. At the Mutua Madrid Open, she faced longtime nemesis Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, who had beaten her in all eight of their previous matches. But this time, Sevastova flipped the script, winning a gritty 6-4, 7-5 battle marked by long rallies and clever drop shots.
She now faces fellow Latvian and No. 23 seed Jelena Ostapenko — a rematch of their past two meetings, both won by Sevastova. Elsewhere, fellow returning mother Belinda Bencic celebrated her daughter Bella's first birthday with a dominant 6-0, 6-2 win over Zeynep Sonmez. The Swiss star, back on tour since October and already ranked No. 42, will next face No. 20 seed Clara Tauson.
Spanish Tennis player Carlos Alcaraz arrives ahead of the awards ceremony for Laureus World Sports Awards at Palacio de Cibeles, Madrid, Spain, on Monday. Reuters
However, three-time Madrid champion Petra Kvitova was unable to find the magic of her title runs in the Spanish capital, falling to Katie Volynets 6-4, 6-0. Kvitova, who returned from maternity leave in February, is now 0-4 since coming back. Volynets moves on to face No. 13 seed Diana Shnaider.
Sabalenka expecting 'big chance' to win on Madrid clay: World number one Aryna Sabalenka believes she will have 'big chances' to perform well on clay this season, should she recapture the level she showed during last year's Madrid Open final against Iga Swiatek.
The Belarusian squandered three match points in a heartbreaking defeat by Swiatek in the Spanish capital 12 months ago, in what was a high-quality clash that earned WTA Match of the Year honours at the end of the season.
Targeting a third Madrid Open crown this fortnight at the Caja Magica, Sabalenka reflects fondly on her final against Swiatek, despite coming agonisingly close to victory before falling just short.
'That match was a blockbuster, and I really enjoyed playing, it was very intense, very long. If I can play like that in every match on clay, I think I have big chances to perform well on the clay court season this year,' Sabalenka said on Wednesday.
Sabalenka arrives in Madrid on the back of a runner-up showing in Stuttgart, where she fell in the final to Jelena Ostapenko.
Meanwhile, Carlos Alcaraz has lifted the lid on his secret for winning his first Wimbledon title in 2023 and defending the title a year later — partying hard in Ibiza.
In a new Netflix documentary, 'Carlos Alcaraz: My Way', the Spaniard describes how he went against the advice of his team to let his hair down on the Mediterranean island.
'I had a friend who had a few days off, going to Ibiza with other friends,' the now four-times Grand Slam champion said.
'I ended up going and they know what I'm going there to do. In Ibiza, I'm not going to lie, it's pretty much all about partying and going out.
'I basically went there to reventar (literally, 'burst' in Spanish), I'm not sure if that's the best way to put it but I went there to go out.'
It might not have been textbook preparation for Wimbledon, and his agent Albert Molina warned against it, but Alcaraz said he had to let off steam after losing to Novak Djokovic in the 2023 French Open semis having suffered with nerves and cramps.
Ibiza's tonic paid off spectacularly too, as a few weeks later, aged 20, he beat the Serb in the Wimbledon final.
'I tried to explain to him that it might not be the best idea to go to Ibiza for three or four days on vacation when he had Queen's the following week and then Wimbledon,' Molina said.
Agencies
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