On day eight of the 2024 Mutua Madrid Open, the bottom half of the men’s draw was in quarter-final action, while the top half benefited from a day off after yesterday’s fourth-round matches.
First on the court were Carlos Alcaraz and Andrey Rublev, with the Russian ending Alcaraz’s hopes of a third Madrid title with a surprise 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory.
Off-court, the other piece of news was Jannik Sinner’s withdrawal with a right hip injury, handing Auger-Aliassime a walkover into the semi-final.
Taylor Fritz then played the last match of the day, finding a way through Francisco Cerundolo to earn his 250th tour-level win en route to the semi-final.
You can see highlights, match stats and a quick recap for both matches below.
Day Eight 2024 Madrid Open Quarter Final Results
| Winner | Loser | Scoreline |
|---|---|---|
| Andrey Rublev (7) | Carlos Alcaraz (2) | 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 |
| Taylor Fritz (12) | Francisco Cerundolo (21) | 6-1, 3-6. 6-3 |
Rublev Upsets Alcaraz
On Wednesday, Andrey Rublev clinched one of his most significant victories of the season, ending Carlos Alcaraz’s bid for a historic third consecutive title at the Caja Magica.
The seventh seed has had a subpar period of form, but he triumphed 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 in just over two hours, fueled by an untypically calm demeanour and very effective serving display.
Rublev’s forehand and aggressive play under the closed roof proved too much for Alcaraz, who I thought looked a bit lacklustre. His forehand looked tame compared to the Russian’s.
Rublev notched 27 winners and inflicted Alcaraz’s first on Spanish clay since 2021.
I think the serve saved me a lot of times today, I think the key was I was completely calm the whole match. I did not say one word, even if I was losing. That was the key, and I could serve even better near the end. In the beginning, I was not serving that well but little by little, after set one, I served better and better and finished really well. When you start to think of how good everything is, I was not winning for six weeks at all. So it is better not to think at all. That it is just a moment and it happens to everyone. Everyone has been through these moments and the most important thing is to keep working and keep improving. Rublev on his win.
Match Stats
| Andrey Rublev | Carlos Alcaraz | |
|---|---|---|
| Aces | 5 | 1 |
| Double Faults | 2 | 2 |
| 1st Serve Percentage | 74% | 70% |
| 1st Serve Points Won | 80% (51/64) | 60% (34/57) |
| 2nd Serve Points Won | 45% (10/22) | 71% (17/24) |
| Break Points Saved | 88% (7/8) | 77% (10/13) |
| 1st Return Points Won | 40% (23/57) | 20% (13/64) |
| 2nd Return Points Won | 29% (7/24) | 55% (12/22) |
| Break Points Converted | 23% (3/13) | 13% (1/8) |
| Winners | 27 | 19 |
| Unforced Errors | 13 | 11 |
| Net Points Won | 69% (18/26) | 64% (9/14) |
| Max Points In Row | 7 | 6 |
| Service Points Won | 71% (61/86) | 63% (51/81) |
| Return Points Won | 37% (30/81) | 29% (25/86) |
| Total Points Won | 54% (91/167) | 46% (76/167) |
| Max Games In Row | 3 | 3 |
| Service Games Won | 93% (13/14) | 77% (10/13) |
| Return Games Won | 23% (3/13) | 7% (1/14) |
| Total Games Won | 59% (16/27) | 41% (11/27) |
Highlights
Fritz Fights Off Cerundolo
Taylor Fritz overcame Francisco Cerundolo 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 in a challenging match that lasted one hour and 46 minutes.
Fritz dominated the opening set without facing a break point and, despite Cerundolo outplaying him in the second set, broke the Argentine late in the third set to clinch victory. This win levels their head-to-head record at 1-1 and avenges Fritz’s loss at last year’s Roland Garros.
The American has had a decent few weeks on clay. He made the final in Munich, and early on against Cerundolo, he struck some very sweet forehands to dominate.
However, as conditions further cooled and the balls slowed, his game wasn’t quite as effective, and Cerundolo looked increasingly dangerous from the baseline.
The third set really felt like anyone, but after Fritz escaped 15-30 at 3-3, some of the points started to go in his favour, and he capitalised to break serve, then held to love to become only the third American to make the last four in Madrid.
I returned really well in the first set, putting a lot of balls in play. To be honest, he was making some mistakes, so it made me look a lot better, and I was definitely finding some balls to attack on. In the second and third sets, I feel he got a lot more solid. He was not giving me anything for free, and it was really hard to hit through him and find balls to attack on. He was getting the backhand through the court. It was tough to look for forehands. It was really tough from the ground, but I just had to hang in the match with my serve and fight through some points even though I didn’t feel super comfortable. I took my chance when I got it. Fritz on his match with Cerundolo.
Match Stats
| Taylor Fritz | Francisco Cerundolo | |
|---|---|---|
| Aces | 5 | 1 |
| Double Faults | 1 | 4 |
| 1st Serve Percentage | 61% | 71% |
| 1st Serve Points Won | 83% (38/46) | 68% (36/53) |
| 2nd Serve Points Won | 48% (14/29) | 45% (10/22) |
| Break Points Saved | 50% (1/2) | 50% (3/6) |
| 1st Return Points Won | 32% (17/53) | 17% (8/46) |
| 2nd Return Points Won | 55% (12/22) | 52% (15/29) |
| Break Points Converted | 50% (3/6) | 50% (1/2) |
| Winners | 18 | 19 |
| Unforced Errors | 14 | 29 |
| Net Points Won | 81% (13/16) | 76% (13/17) |
| Max Points In Row | 8 | 4 |
| Service Points Won | 69% (52/75) | 61% (46/75) |
| Return Points Won | 39% (29/75) | 31% (23/75) |
| Total Points Won | 54% (81/150) | 46% (69/150) |
| Max Games In Row | 5 | 3 |
| Service Games Won | 92% (12/13) | 75% (9/12) |
| Return Games Won | 25% (3/12) | 8% (1/13) |
| Total Games Won | 60% (15/25) | 40% (10/25) |
Highlights
Madrid Open 2024 Day 9 Quarter Final Matches
- Daniil Medvedev (3) vs Jiri Lehecka (30)