Carlos Alcaraz did not need to put his tender right arm to the test on Friday while easing to victory in his opening match at the Madrid Open.
The two-time defending champion was playing for the first time in nearly a month after his injured arm ruled him out of Monte Carlo and Barcelona.
After doubting this week that he would be good to go in Spain’s capital, Alcaraz said he could afford to hold back a little in a 6-2, 6-1 win over Alexander Shevchenko.
Photo: Reuters
“I didn’t hit my forehand 100 percent,” Alcaraz said. “I hit it softer than I used to hit it, but I think it helped me, you know, to, let’s say: stay relaxed.”
“I was really happy to not feel anything in the forearm, and after that I could increase my intensity a bit,” he added. “It was great for me this match.”
The third-ranked Alcaraz is seeded second behind Jannik Sinner. Both had first-round byes.
Seyboth Wild upset Daniil Medvedev at last year’s French Open and should offer a stiffer challenge to Alcaraz in the round of 32.
Fourth seed Alexander Zverev, another two-time Madrid champion, saw off Borna Coric 6-3, 6-2 and faces Denis Shapovalov next.
Seventh seed Andrey Rublev snapped a four-game losing streak by eliminating Facundo Bagnis 6-1, 6-4.
Holger Rune was just two points from defeat against Mariano Navone before he rallied to force a second-set tiebreaker and prevailed 5-7, 7-6 (7/2), 6-4.
Eighth seed Hubert Hurkacz beat Jack Draper 6-1, 7-5. Last year’s finalist Jan Lennard Struff, Taylor Fritz, Tommy Paul, Alejandro Davidovich, and Sebastian Baez also moved on.
Defending women’s champion Aryna Sabalenka beat Magda Linette 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 on the Caja Magica clay.
The second-ranked Sabalenka struggled with her serve at times against Linette, but the two-time Australian Open winner struck her 10th ace on match point.
Fourth seed Elena Rybakina beat Lucia Bronzetti 6-4, 6-3 to take her season-leading win haul to 27 as she seeks her fourth title this year.
The other winners in the women’s singles were: Caroline Garcia, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Mirra Andreeva, Jasmine Paolini, Ashlyn Krueger, Daria Kasatkina, Mayar Sherif, Caroline Dolehide, Yulia Putintseva, Sara Bejlek, Jaqueline Adina Cristian, Marketa Vondrousova, Robin Montgomery and Danielle Collins.
In the women’s doubles, Chan Hao-ching of Taiwan and Veronika Kudermetova of Russia defeated Chinese pair Jiang Xinyu and Guo Hanyu 7-5, 6-3 in the round of 32.
Additional reporting by staff writer
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