Madrid Masters: Another Magic Spell Unfolds for Rafael Nadal

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: May 6, 2011

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For an event with such a short history, the Madrid Masters and its Magic Box venue have won more than their share of headlines, and this year promised more of the same.

The Spanish capital won tennis Masters status in 2002 as part of the European indoor swing but was moved to May and to clay in 2009.

It became the first Masters in Europe to become a “mini Major” when the ATP joined with the WTA to make Madrid a combined event.

And for the event’s 10th anniversary, there was yet another change: a swap in the calendar with the Rome Masters.

But the tennis at the purpose-built Caja Magica—the Madrid Masters' venue since 2009—has not lacked drama either.

At the inaugural event, Rafael Nadal beat Novak Djokovic in their third clay Masters showdown in the space of a month: It lasted over four hours. Then in the final, Roger Federer beat Nadal on clay for only the second time in their 23-match rivalry. 

Last year, the home crowd celebrated Nadal’s revenge over Federer for the title and, this year, the Magic Box promised another crucial phase in the battle between those same three players.

Djokovic was enjoying a 28-match winning streak and had beaten Nadal in their previous two meetings—both Masters finals.

Federer had something to prove. He was behind both Nadal and Djokovic in the rankings and had lost to one of them in four consecutive tournaments.
 
For Nadal, Madrid represented even more: the defence of a 34-match winning streak on clay, a possible 20th Masters title and his status as No. 1 in the world.

The top seed came to Madrid on the back of four consecutive finals and more records than you could shake a stick at.

In Monte Carlo, he became the first man to win a tournament seven times in a row and, incidentally, notched up his 30th clay court title.

During Barcelona, he reached the 500th win of his career—the second yo...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Tennis

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