Defending Champ Ruud Escapes as Tsitsipas Misses His Moment in Madrid

The red clay of Europe often presents opportunity in the spring.

For Stefanos Tsitsipas on Tuesday in Madrid, it was an opportunity lost.

The World No. 80 had done much of the heavy lifting against defending champion Casper Ruud in their sixth career meeting, saving the first 11 break points he faced and putting himself in position to close with Ruud serving at 3-5, 15-40.

But Tsitsipas, in search of a signature win to reignite his momentum, was unable to convert. He squandered both match points, dropped serve in the following game, and ultimately fell 6-7(4), 7-6(2), 7-6(3) in a crushing defeat.

The Greek later turned to social media, posting on X in the aftermath of the loss.

Credit Ruud for navigating his way to safety after a demanding battle. The Norwegian extended his Madrid winning streak to nine matches and kept alive his hopes of building confidence on his preferred surface.

How did the 27-year-old manage to escape?

“Good question,” Ruud said.

“I was on the brink of heading home already, so I’m really happy and proud of the way I fought back. The first two sets were very close—the scoreline shows that. In the third set, I felt like I had a better start and created some early chances.”

Ruud had his opportunities. He led 0-40 on Tsitsipas’ serve at 3-2 in the final set but failed to convert, having also held 15-40 in the Greek’s previous service game.

It appeared that the day might slip away—particularly after Ruud missed a routine forehand that would have secured the first break of the set.

“I had a relatively easy forehand,” he said. “The plan was to go big crosscourt, but at the last moment I hesitated and changed direction down the line. I caught the top of the net. Those are the shots you tend to remember a bit too long.

“But I moved on, and fortunately, the next opportunity I had, I was able to break back and stay in the match.”

Ruud took control in the decisive tiebreak. A forehand winner at 3-3, whizzing past as Tsitsipas rushed the net, shifted the momentum firmly in his favor.

He closed the match by winning the final five points and will next face either Francisco Cerundolo or Alexander Blockx in the quarterfinals.

Ruud advances to his 15th career Masters 1000 quarterfinal and improves to 15-4 in Madrid, though he will need another win to remain inside the ATP’s Top 20 next week.