Madrid Open: Rafael Nadal Stunned by Alexander Zverev To Cast Cloud Over Roland Garros Bid
NDTV
Madrid Open: Alexander Zverev coasted past Rafael Nadal in a match which clocked an hour and 44 minutes.
Rafael Nadal lost 6-4, 6-4 to Germany's Alexander Zverev in the Madrid Open quarter-finals on Friday, casting doubts over the Spaniard's form ahead of this month's French Open. Nadal has now fallen early in two clay-court Masters tournaments ahead of the Grand Slam in Paris, after going out in the Monte Carlo quarter-finals last month before winning in Barcelona. Even in Barcelona, however, Nadal needed to save a championship point to beat Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final. World number two Nadal is hoping to clinch a 14th Roland Garros title and record-setting 21st major in the French capital. Zverev's impressive straights-set win at the Caja Magica earns him a meeting with Dominic Thiem in the Madrid semis, in what will be a repeat of last year's US Open final, which was won by Thiem. After losing to world number eight Andrey Rublev in Monaco, Nadal was convincingly beaten by Zverev and the spotlight will be on the 34-year-old now in Rome next week, his last tournament before heading to Paris.
Rajasthan Royals head coach Rahul Dravid was missing from their pre-season training camp ahead of the IPL 2025 due to injury.
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The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is unlikely to receive any "formal clarification" from the ICC on the perceived snub during the closing ceremony of the Champions Trophy in Dubai.
Atletico Madrid stare down both bitter city rivals Real Madrid and the weight of history as they aim to reach the Champions League quarter-finals on Thursday (IST).
HS Prannoy was defeated by France's Toma Junior Popov in the men's singles opening round.
Wasim Akram admitted being stunned on failing to spot a single PCB official at the ICC Champions Trophy presentation ceremony.
BCCI president Roger Binny presented the white jackets to India players and the medals to match officials, while ICC chairman Jay Shah handed the trophy to skipper Rohit Sharma and gave the medals to the winners.
India captain Rohit Sharma will be 38 in two months' time and with India's next major ODI tournament being the 2027 ODI World Cup, it remains to be seen how long he plays at the top level
The PCB is expected to take up the matter with the ICC as to why its CEO was not invited on stage for the closing ceremony.
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As India won the title after beating New Zealand by four wickets in the final, the podium was shared by ICC chairman Jay Shah, BCCI president Roger Binny and secretary Devajit Saikia and New Zealand Cricket (NZC) director Roger Twose.
A tragic incident occurred ahead of the Barcelona-Osasuna clash, causing it to be postponed to a later date.
The four-time Grand Slam winner from Spain is vying to join Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer as the only players to win three straight Indian Wells ATP Masters titles.
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