On Thursday in Madrid, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray will play for the 37th time, and for the first time in five years. It was assumed they would never play again after Murray’s quasi-retirement due to hip issues. And it’s most surprising to see them meet on clay, a surface Andy had seemingly sworn off.
Thursday’s schedule features many of the ATP’s top names, with eight of the top 10 players in the world. And two of these third round matchups see top 10 seeds collide.
In the WTA singles draw, the semifinals are already upon us. And following many upsets earlier in the tournament, a new WTA 1000 champion is guaranteed to be crowned.
Each day, this preview will analyze the two most intriguing matchups, while highlighting other notable matches on the schedule. Thursday’s play gets underway at 12:00pm local time.
Novak Djokovic (1) vs. Andy Murray (WC) – 12:00pm on Manolo Santana Stadium
Djokovic is 25-11 against Murray, and has taken 17 of their last 21 matches, dating back nearly 10 years. On clay, Novak is 5-1, with Andy’s only victory coming in the final of Rome six years ago. A week prior to that, they also met in the final of this event, with Djokovic prevailing in three sets. Given recent history, it’s startling to see Murray has played more matches this season than Djokovic. Andy is 12-8, while the Novak is only 6-3, as his vaccination status forced him to miss the Australian Open, Indian Wells, and Miami. But Djokovic gained some extremely valuable match play two weeks ago in Belgrade, where he came from a set down three times to reach the final. Murray looked great in taking out both Dominic Thiem and Denis Shapovalov this week, and should play freely knowing he’s a huge underdog, especially on this surface. But a Novak loss would still be quite surprising.
Carlos Alcaraz (7) vs. Cameron Norrie (9) – Not Before 8:00pm on Manolo Santana Stadium
Alcaraz is now a fantastic 24-3 on the year, with three titles. The Barcelona champion is on a six-match win streak in his home country, and is one round away from what would be a blockbuster quarterfinal against fellow Spaniard Rafael Nadal. But Cam Norrie is another of the ATP’s most improved players. Since the start of 2021, he’s notched 71 tour wins. During that same stretch, the British No.1 is 18-7 on clay, having achieved two finals last season. However, in two recent meetings with Alcaraz, Norrie failed to win a set. And as per Tennis Abstract, Cam is 4-22 lifetime against the top 10, a club Carlitos is now a part of. Alcaraz is not a player who has allowed pressure to impact his play, so I expect Spain’s new hometown hero to advance and get a rematch with his idol.
Other Notable Matches on Thursday:
Ons Jabeur (8) vs. Ekaterina Alexandrova – Both players are vying for their first WTA 1000 final. Jabeur is 1-6 lifetime against Alexandrova at all levels.
Rafael Nadal (3) vs. David Goffin (Q) – Nadal looked sharp on Wednesday in his first match in six weeks. Goffin is coming off a disappointing 2021 where he owned a losing record, but was the champion on clay in Marrakech last month. Rafa is 4-2 overall against David, and 4-0 on clay.
Sascha Zverev (2) vs. Lorenzo Musetti (Q) – Zverev came back from a set down on Wednesday against Marin Cilic, while Musetti took out Sebastian Korda in straights. This is their first career meeting.
Stefanos Tsitsipas (4) vs. Grigor Dimitrov – These two one-handed backhanders are both having strong clay court seasons. Tsitsipas is 8-1, and Dimitrov allowed Diego Schwartzman only three games on Wednesday. Stefanos lead their head-to-head 3-1, and won both their clay court matches.
Felix Auger-Aliassime (8) vs. Jannik Sinner (10) – Sinner has become the ATP’s escape artist, as he survived three match points in his opening round against Tommy Paul. Auger-Aliassime took out clay-courter Cristian Garin in the last round by a score of 6-3, 6-0. This is another first-time encounter.
Jessica Pegula (12) vs. Jil Teichmann – For Pegula, this is a second consecutive WTA 1000 semifinal. Teichmann is going for her second WTA 1000 final since last August, and is yet to drop a set this fortnight.
Thursday’s full Order of Play is here.
