Madrid Open: Rafael Nadal beats Alex de Minaur in two straight sets to avenge Barcelona Open defeat

The day of the big-time players has finally arrived in the Madrid Open. This was the day the whole Stadium was jam-packed as Rafael Nadal played his second round on Saturday. All the fans were set to see El Nino in action in his home ground in the quest for his 6th Madrid Open title. It has been a long time since these people have seen Rafael Nadal on the court as he has been missing for the last two years.

The 22 time grand slam winner was set to play against Australian higher seeded and number 11 ranked player Alex de Minaur. This was not only the opportunity for Nadal to only win against a large supporting crowd, but also earn redemption. The last time these two had met was in Barcelona where de Minaur caused a major upset and eliminated Rafael Nadal from the competition. This was the time Rafa had to show who is the boss.

Nadal comes out on top

Even though these two have not played a lot of games, De Minaur would still be confident of having beaten the Spaniard twice in his career. With the head-to-head battle neck in neck in the 5 encounters, this was the moment these two top players had to prove themselves. The first set was another great contest among the two where services were breaking continuously. The set eventually ended in a tiebreaker where Nadal was the one who came out on top. Though Nadal managed to scrape through the first there was still one more set to go, but this time El Nino made easy work of De Minaur and made sure he made it to the third round.

Alex de Minaur might have given a great contest in the first set but unfortunately succumbed under pressure in the second. As for Nadal he finally got his redemption after the disappointing loss in the Barcelona Open which was weeks ago. This also keeps his title chances alive and he will be playing Pedro Cachin in the third round. The fans will still believe that Nadal will win the title and announce himself in the clay season.