By Alberto Amalfi | Thursday, May 5, 2016
Top-seeded Novak Djokovic, reigning champion Andy Murray, Kei Nishikori and Tomas Berdych all advanced to the Madrid Open quarterfinals.
Photo credit: Mutua Madrid Open
Altitude hasn't stalled a high-flying Novak Djokovic.
The top-seeded Serbian flattened Roberto Bautista Agut, 6-2, 6-1, in Madrid storming into his sixth quarterfinal in seven tournaments this season.
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After his opening win over Borna Coric, Djokovic said he wasn't full satisfied with his serve. He rectified that issue today.
Djokovic served 62 percent, permitted just three points on his first serve and did not face a break point in raising his 2016 record to an ATP-best 30-2 mark.
Bautista Agut gamely saved three break points in the fifth game.
Undeterred, Djokovic drilled a forehand return into the corner converting his fourth break point for 3-2 sparking a run that saw him tear through 10 of the final 11 games.
"It was exactly after 2-All, that long game when I managed to break his serve. Flawless performance after that," Djokovic told the media. "Everything worked very well. The conditions were a bit slower than was the case yesterday because it was cloudy, so if felt on the court that you have more clay so you could actually be more aggressive and step in, which I did.
"I didn't give him too much time. I think I used the variation of the shots, opening up the court, flat, down the lines, and slices, and you know, also different rotations on the serve."
The 2011 champion, back after a two-year hiatus, closed the match in style smacking a backhand return winner down the line.
Djokovic, who greeted the faithful with an extended autograph session afterward, will meet either seventh-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga or 11th-seeded Milos Raonic in the quarterfinals.
"Raonic probably has a slightly better serve, but Tsonga is a player that moves better on clay and plays generally better than Raonic on this surface," Djokovic said. "That doesn't mean anything, because Raonic in the last couple of years in Madrid with this altitude has been making some good results. He's been showing some good tennis. So both of those guys rely heavily on their first serves. If the first serve percentage is high, they can be a threat to any player on any surface."
Reigning champion Andy Murray did not face a break point dismissing 16th-seeded Frenchman Gilles Simon, 6-4, 6-2, in 99 minutes.
"The ball flies through the air a bit quicker because of the altitude. Serving is a little bit easier," Murray said. "Get more free points on your serve which obviously helps anyone with a big first serve.
"Also helps a bit on the second serve too. Not as easy to return. Yeah, until last year I hadn't actually played that well here. Hadn't had great results at this event. Just depends a little bit on the day and who you're playing against. You play against some of the bigger servers, it's tough as well."
The second-seeded Scot raised his record against Simon to 14-2, including a 4-0 mark in Madrid.
Murray will meet nemesis Tomas Berdych for a semifinal spot.
The eighth-seeded Czech grinded through a demanding 7-6 (8), 7-5 victory over ninth-seeded David Ferrer, avenging a 6-4, 7-5, loss to the Spaniard in the 2015 Doha final.
Murray is 7-6 lifetime vs. Berdych, but the 2012 Madrid runner-up has won all three of their clay-court meetings, including a straight-sets win in the 2013 Madrid quarterfinals.
Former Madrid finalist Kei Nishikori beat Richard Gasquet, 6-4, 7-5, his first victory over the talented Frenchman in seven meetings. Gasquet had won 12 of their 13 prior sets.
"When you lose six in a row maybe you have to change something to beat Richard today," Nishikori said. "I think I did pretty good everything: serve, return, and using my forehands a lot and I was playing aggressive."
Next for Nishikori is a date with explosive Australian Nick Kyrgios in a rematch of the Miami semifinals, which the Japanese won 6-3, 7-5.
Kyrgios backed up his victory over reigning Roland Garros champion Stan Wawrinka yesterday with a hard-fought 7-6 (5), 4-6, 6-3 triumph over Pablo Cuevas. Kyrgios served 70 percent, hit 14 aces and saved five of seven break points in the two hour, four-minute match.