Author: admin

As Jannik Sinner accepted a three-month suspension following his positive doping tests earlier this year, the starting gun was fired on the race to replace him as world No 1.

Sinner has a huge advantage over his rivals in the rankings when news broke that he had opted to strike a deal with the World Anti-Doping Agency to take a ban rather than face the threat of a one-year suspension if he took his case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Alexander Zverev was closest to Sinner in the rankings and there was a real chance the German could claim the world No 1 ranking for the first time in his career.

That was before his form fell off a cliff after his run to the Australian Open final in January, when he was taken apart by Sinner.

He opted to play clay court tournaments in South America after that and struggled to make an impact before lost early at the Indian Wells and Miami Masters.

More Tennis News

‘I don’t think clay is going to be Jannik Sinner’s best surface’, assesses Andy Roddick

Jannik Sinner reveals how ban ‘helped me a lot’ as he prepares for comeback

Zverev was asked whether the chase for the world No 1 spot was impacting his form and he made these comments last month.

“It was in the beginning. Now it’s less, because I’m just playing terrible,” he said.

“So for me, I have to find my game before thinking about that, because to become World No 1, you have to win tournaments. I’m not
past getting first, second round at the moment. So I need to figure that out first.”

“I think I’m serving quite badly the last few weeks. My second serve is fine, but my first serve is terrible.

“From the back of the court I’m not playing great. It’s everything. You can’t really name one thing.”

Zverev’s latest setback as he lost against Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo in the Madrid Masters added to his woes and there is more danger of his losing the No 2 ranking to Alcaraz than usurping Sinner at the top of the rankings.

Alcaraz has also been impacted by Sinner’s absence, as he was well beaten by Jack Draper in Indian Wells and then lost early in Miami.

His Monte Carlo Masters win was a stand-out week for the Spaniard, but he admits the chance to take Sinner’s top ranking has been on his mind.

“A lot of people are asking me, or are telling me, that I have the chance to become No 1 if Jannik is not playing,” said the four-time Grand Slam champion. “So probably that pressure has killed me in some way.

“I’m not surprised. The people always say that we have to win the tournaments or the top people have to be there all the time playing finals or winning tournaments.

“I’m just thinking that I’m not able to become No 1 in the clay season. Even if Jannik is not playing, I don’t have the chance to do it. I think I’m too far from Jannik.

“So I’m just here and I realise that I don’t have to think about it and just go there and play. That’s my mindset right now.”

The biggest winner from a curious three months in the men’s game appears to be the one player who has been banned from playing in the last four Masters 1000 tournaments.

Sinner will return to action in from of his home fans in Rome next month and they will be cheering him on and he looks to extend his dominant lead at the top of the ATP Rankings in what is left of the clay court season

READ NEXT: Who is Jannik Sinner’s new girlfriend? World No 1 dating model Lara Leito

The post How Jannik Sinner’s drug ban had a negative impact on his biggest rivals appeared first on Tennis365.

Iga Swiatek on a clay court has tended to set alarm bells ringing for her opponents, but that mindset may have shifted this year.

After a challenging few months that have seen Swiatek struggle to find her consistency and slump to some shock defeats, the Polish star is facing a crucial few weeks that will see her defend a massive 4,000 WTA ranking points.

Those points were amassed in her win at the Madrid and Rome WTA 1000 tournaments and another French Open win that ensured she had an aura on clay that sent shivers down the spine of her opponents before they dared to step with her.

That has been shaken by the events of the last year and after Jelena Ostapenko hammered Swiatek into submission in the Stuttgart clay court contest earlier this month, she arrived in Madrid with questions to answer.

While she has made it through to the quarter-finals with a win against world No 13 Diana Shnaider, the manner of her victory leaves more question marks.

More Tennis News

Revealed: How Iga Swiatek can remain as WTA world No 2 at the Madrid Open

Iga Swiatek says WTA is ‘forcing us to play more events’

The first set was a snapshot of the Swiatek of old as she recorded yet another 6-0 opening set and the expectation was that she would back that up with a convincing win.

Yet this is a very different Swiatek and the uncertainty around her game was in evidence as she faced nine break points in a set laced with errors and eventually lost out against Shnaider in the tie-break.

To her credit, Swiatek found a way to come through despite more scares on her serve in the deciding set and her 6-0, 6-7(3), 6-4 win was a tribute to her battling qualities.

Yet her upcoming opponents will not be looking at Swiatek as a winning machine on her current form, despite her positive comments after the match.

“I think I moved better, and I spin the ball a little bit more,” she said as she looked back on the third set.

“In second set it got pretty windy, and I didn’t move my legs properly. I played some shots like not being ready, you know, so for sure that kind of kept my rhythm off. And then Diana also used her chances, and she was more proactive than in the first set. So I think it was a mix of different things.

“I treat every point the same way. I don’t feel like I need to change anything on break points. I just trust that it’s going to work. That mindset, I think, helps with tension a little bit.”

They may be at different ends of their careers, but Swiatek’s status at this point in the clay court season is similar to that of 24-time Grand Slam winning legend Novak Djokovic.

While the Serbian legend was always going to wane at some point in his career, his opponents were often beaten by his reputation as much as a his brilliance on court over the last two decades.

Swiatek has a similar scenario in her favour as she reigned supreme as the queen of the women’s game, especially on clay courts.

Yet her opponents can now see dips in form and mental frailties that were not so obvious until recently and that means she is more vulnerable than she has been in recent years.

On current form, Swiatek is not the favourite to win in Madrid and she may also drop ranking points in the upcoming WTA 1000 event in Rome.

So by the time she gets to Roland Garros, this magnificent player may well be under huge pressure to avoid a major slide in the rankings.

Swiatek needs to find her best form quickly to confirm she is still the force she always was on clay, but fixing the doubts she now has in her mind when the pressure is applied will not be easy.

READ NEXT: Iga Swiatek emulates outstanding Martina Hingis milestone as she survives Madrid Open scare

The post Iga Swiatek and Novak Djokovic hit by the same problem – and it will be hard to correct appeared first on Tennis365.

Iga Swiatek survived a scare against Diana Shnaider to reach the quarter-finals of the 2025 Madrid Open, and her latest win has brought more impressive statistics.

The five-time major champion prevailed 6-0, 6-7(3), 6-4 against the world No 13 in Estadio Manolo Santana in the last 16 of the WTA 1000 clay tournament.

Swiatek dropped only seven points as she took a one-sided opening set in just 22 minutes, but Shnaider hit back as she won a tight second set on a tiebreak.

The world No 2 sealed a hard-fought win against the 21-year-old Russian after securing the only break of the third set in the fifth game. She remains undefeated in matches where she won the first set 6-0, improving her record to 78-0.

The match was initially scheduled to be played on Monday, but the major power outage in Spain and Portugal caused play in Madrid to be suspended.

After her victory over Shnaider, Swiatek was asked what she did during the blackout.

“Honestly, it’s good that in Madrid the sun is setting pretty late,” the 23-year-old said in her on-court interview. “So yeah, as soon as it got down and it was dark, they put the energy back in our area.

“So honestly, I just chilled and used that time to not think about what I should do. Should I, I don’t know text or contact, like… there was no signal, so basically no one used their phones. It was nice, I liked it.”

With her win, Swiatek has now progressed to the quarter-finals at each of the last 17 clay tournaments she has entered.

The Pole is the first woman to reach this many consecutive quarter-finals on clay since tennis great Martina Hingis — who made 19 in a row between 1997 and 2002.

Swiatek is also the only player to feature in the quarter-finals of all five WTA 1000 tournaments held so far in 2025.

Iga Swiatek News

Revealed: How Iga Swiatek can remain as WTA world No 2 at the Madrid Open

Iga Swiatek says WTA is ‘forcing us to play more events’

The 23-year-old, who is the reigning Madrid Open champion, has not gone beyond the semi-finals of an event since the French Open in June last year.

Her triumph against Shnaider also saw her improve her record against opponents ranked in the top 20 to a stellar 83-32 (72.2%).

Since 1990, only Steffi Graf and Serena Williams have a higher win rate against players in the top 20 of the WTA Rankings than Swiatek.

Best win percentage vs. top 20 WTA players (since 1990)

1. Steffi Graf – 82.1%

2. Serena Williams – 75.3%

3. Iga Swiatek – 72.2%

4. Monica Seles – 70.4%

5. Martina Hingis – 67.9%

Swiatek will face world No 5 Madison Keys in the last eight in Madrid in a rematch of their Australian Open semi-final — where Keys won after saving a match point.

READ NEXT: Mirra Andreeva’s stunning WTA 1000 milestone confirmed ahead of Coco Gauff showdown

The post Iga Swiatek emulates outstanding Martina Hingis milestone as she survives Madrid Open scare appeared first on Tennis365.

With 24 Grand Slams and 428 weeks as the world No 1 to his name, Novak Djokovic’s place as one of the greatest – if not the greatest – tennis players of all time is more than secured.

And, while the Serbian demonstrated several key strengths at the peak of his powers, there was one area in his game that often attracted the most attention.

Djokovic is often considered the leading returner of his generation and perhaps the greatest returner in men’s tennis history, ahead of the likes of Andre Agassi and Roger Federer.

However, has this shot been behind Djokovic’s recent lack of consistency, and a notable drop in from across recent months?

Return greatness

The ATP return rating is a key indicator of just how good the very best of the men’s game are on return, with players rated across four separate statistics.

Those four areas are the percentage of first serve return points won, the percentage of second serve points won, the percentage of return games won, and the percentage of break points converted.

Looking at historic return ratings, Djokovic is ranked seventh on the all-time ATP list, with great rival Rafael Nadal the only Grand Slam champion ahead of him; former world No 3 Guillermo Coria is ranked at the top.

Against players of all levels across his career, the 37-year-old has an overall return rating of 164.5, with arguably his most impressive stat being 55.1% of second serve return points won.

Across his career, he has also converted 44.1% of break points, won 31.7% of return games, and won 33.6% of first serve return points.

Historically, Djokovic’s record gets more impressive when he faces consistently tougher opponents.

His return rating is the fifth-highest against players inside the top 50, the third-highest against players inside the top 20, and the second-highest against players inside the top 10 – only behind Nadal.

Against top-10 players, he has won a staggering 25.4% of return games and 52.9% of second serve return points.

However, if you look at his stats across 2024 and over the past 52 weeks, it is clear to see that Djokovic’s level on return is dropping.

Recent struggles

Despite a difficult 2024 season, Djokovic was still ranked fourth in terms of overall return quality last season, with an overall rating of 157.7, just 6.8 off his overall career rating.

The only men with a higher rating than him in 2024 were Alex de Minaur (165.6), Carlos Alcaraz (162.2), and Jannik Sinner (158.4).

If you look across the past 52 weeks (April 2024 – April 2025), Djokovic remains comfortably inside the top 10 in seventh place, though his overall rating drops slightly to 154.6.

And, if you dig further, there is obvious cause for concern.

Over the past 52 weeks, Djokovic is ranked down at 35th when it comes to return stats against top-10 opponents, with a significant dip in his return rating of 115.1.

Perhaps the most notable decline comes in the percentage of return games won against top-10 players in that period, dropping from 25.4% across his career to 13.1% over the past year.

Djokovic has still won a solid 47.9% of second serve return points, though that is slightly down on his career percentage of 52.9%.

Similar trends are seen elsewhere when it comes to his return rating.

Despite having the third-highest return rating of all time against top-20 players, he is down at 16th in that area for the past 52 weeks.

Meanwhile, he is down at 19th when it comes to top-50 players overall, a drop from fifth across his entire career.

Novak Djokovic News

Novak Djokovic, Emma Raducanu and Andrey Rublev face rankings implications after Madrid Open defeats

Novak Djokovic told why it is ‘getting harder and harder every week’ despite being the GOAT

Serve: The opposite trend

In contrast, there has been the opposite trend for Djokovic when it comes to his serve.

The ATP’s official serve rating is based on six separate statistics, including overall first serve percentage, first serve points won, and second serve points one.

Djokovic is ranked 26th of all time with a serve rating of 284.0, but if you look only at the past 52 weeks, he is up to 10th with a slightly improved rating of 287.6.

He was also rated as the 10th-best server for 2024, with an overall rating of 284.4, just above his career rate.

His improvement on serve in recent years, particularly under the guidance of former coach Goran Ivanisevic, has been well discussed.

However, there can be no denying that while his serve has become a reliable factor in his game, his returning quality has dipped dramatically.

There will likely be other factors that contribute to his recent struggles, though this may be the key area where he is failing to make a big enough impact.

Read Next: Novak Djokovic’s retirement announcement would no longer be a shock

The post Has Novak Djokovic’s former biggest strength become his key weakness? appeared first on Tennis365.

Roland-Garros is just around the corner – and attending the second Grand Slam of the year may be easier (and more luxurious) than you think!

Tennis365 have teamed up with STH Group (Official Agent of Roland-Garros) to offer ticket-inclusive Travel and Official Hospitality packages for tennis devotees keen to be part of the action at Roland-Garros 2025.

With so many Parisien hotels sold out during the tournament, an STH package could be your route to guaranteeing your prized seat watching the world’s best tennis players. Both day and evening packages are on offer, with all the information needed below!

What’s on offer?

Travel and Official Hospitality Packages at Roland-Garros offer an unrivalled VIP experience, with access to hospitality areas and superb premium category reserved seats on the showpiece Philippe-Chatrier court. Choose between L’Orangerie, La Mezzanine and Le Pavillon to experience Roland-Garros in style this summer.

Between 10am and 5.30pm you can enjoy spectacular first-class catering, take advantage of downtime between matches around the facilities of the Roland-Garros complex and enjoy the thrill of the world-class tennis action on the 15,000-capacity Philippe-Chatrier court. If you choose a travel package, travel passes, incredible dinners up the Eiffel Tower, a riverboat cruise, accommodation and of course, ticket-inclusive Official Hospitality Roland-Garros is all covered, so you can quite simply leave it to the team at STH to ensure you have the perfect trip to Paris.

Picking your Roland-Garros package 

L’Orangerie (from €474pp)

The ground floor of L’Orangerie boasts a vibrant hospitality space in the midst of the beautifully restored Auteuil greenhouses, an elegant half-timbered 19th Century building surrounded by greenery.
The Salons de l’Orangerie are located just 200 metres from the Philippe-Chatrier Court and open on to a spacious terrace where you can entertain your guests by drinking a cocktail between matches or at any time of the day.You will enjoy a gourmet lunch away from the excitement of the tournament to spend some private time with your guests. Between 11:30am and 2:30pm, a three-course gourmet lunch with wine selection will be offered.

La Mezzanines (from €456pp)

Discover the Mezzanines of L’Orangerie, the first floor of the L’Orangerie restaurant, nestled in the heart of the famous Auteuil greenhouses. Indulge over a lunchtime cocktail in this atmospheric location.
On arrival at the Roland-Garros stadium, you will experience a personalised welcome.  Our hosts and hostesses will be on hand to offer you drinks and take you to your restaurant, or directly to your seats to watch the match. Enjoy a lunch with a local and seasonal flavour between 11:30am and 2:30pm. Take advantage of this highly flexible three-hour window, far from the excitement of the tournament,

Le Pavillon (from €444pp)

The famous Le Pavillon and its airy terraces are a short walk from the Philippe-Chatrier showpiece court. Here you can receive your guests next to the practice courts where the players are preparing to do battle. This is a large luxuriant space where your guests can relax with a glass of champagne and enjoy a gourmet meal. A gourmet food experience showcasing regional produce will be served between 11:30am and 2:30pm.

Sports Travel Hospitality leading the way

STH Group is an Official Agent of Roland-Garros 2025, taking fans to the heart of the sporting action at this iconic Parisian Grand Slam tournament.

Experience the best high-end Travel and Official Hospitality packages at Roland-Garros with STH. Whether it’s a day or evening match, you will enjoy the finest French gourmet cuisine with gastronomic lunch and dinners in a prestige setting that is Roland-Garros.

Tennis fans around the world can witness the pinnacle of the clay-court season unfold, all the while indulging in luxurious hospitality which only Roland-Garros can provide.

You will have access to the matches of your choice, with the very best seats on the Philippe-Chatrier court.

READ NEXT: Novak Djokovic’s retirement announcement would no longer be a shock

The post Three amazing ways to turn the French Open into an experience you’ll never forget appeared first on Tennis365.

Carlos Alcaraz’s eagerly anticipated Netflix documentary premiered last week, but one of his big rivals has revealed he will never take part in a similar project.

The release of Alcaraz’s much-hyped Netflix documentary was timed to coincide with an appearance at his home Masters 1000 tournament in Madrid, with the umpire’s chairs at the Magic Box venue in the Spanish capital covered in advertising to promote the documentary series.

Alcaraz’s commercial team are positioning the 21-year-old to be the new face of the men’s game and that mission is already a success, as even though Jannik Sinner is world No 1, his 21-year-old Spanish rival is quite clearly the biggest star of the ATP Tour show.

That plan backfired when Alcaraz was forced to pull out of the Madrid Masters due to injury, with the Spanish star unsure when he will be fit to return to action.

His presence on court has been missed in Madrid, but his celebrity status in Spain has not been forgotten, with players being asked about the Alcaraz Netflix show in their press conferences.

More Tennis News

Carlos Alcaraz asked Roger Federer how he stayed motivated – here’s what the Swiss icon said

Boris Becker shares heartfelt advice he gave Carlos Alcaraz in revealing private chat

Former US Open champion Daniil Medvedev is the latest player to be quizzed on the topic and he admitted he would not be signing up for a similar show about his life and career.

“Damn, it’s cameras all over you, all over the day. That’s not me,” said Medvedev.

“I mean, I get it when I’m on court, I try to sign a lot of autographs. Even if you’re in the official hotels or you’re out on a holiday, a lot of people camp outside the hotels. And it’s fine, I sign, I take pictures.

“But when I’m having dinner and when I’m with my family, I don’t. I sometimes can be, it’s not rude, but people are like, Oh, let’s take a photo, when I’m eating dinner. And I’m like, Nope. After dinner’s it’s okay. So I’m pretty, I can be pretty rude with my personal space.

“If I give it to the documentary, I’m going to get nuts, like because, especially when you give your permission to them, they want more. They want to film your daughters, they want to film your wife, they want to ask them questions, they want to ask you more about your personal life.

“They want to know everything about you. They want to know who you date, who, how, what you have for dinner, if you take your shower for five or 15 minutes. But you need to keep something for yourself, otherwise they take all your life away.

“So that’s probably why I will never do a documentary, but let’s see, I never say never.”

Alcaraz has insisted he still plans to play at next month’s Rome Masters, with his defence of the French Open title at Roland Garros his big priority.

“My plan is to go to Rome,” said Alcaraz. “My mindset is to do everything it takes to be 100 per cent for Rome.

“I will do some tests at the beginning of next week just to see how it’s improved and from that let’s see how it’s going to be in the next days.

“My hope is to play in Rome. If not, the next tournament is Roland Garros for me. So I will try to be on court as soon as possible.”

READ NEXT: Why Carlos Alcaraz may have delayed his decision to withdraw from Madrid Open

The post Daniil Medvedev reveals why Carlos Alcaraz Netflix documentary is not for him appeared first on Tennis365.

There may only be two more chances left for Novak Djokovic to tick off his last two big targets in tennis.

As he crashed out of the Madrid Open after a sadly predictable defeat against Matteo Arnaldi, the end of the story that is being curated by the most successful male tennis player of all time felt closer than ever.

It has been clear for some time that Djokovic has little or no motivation to play in regular ATP Tour events, but the option of just playing in the Grand Slam events that still motivate him and not entering any other tournaments is not plausible.

If he played just four Grand Slam events a year, Djokovic would quickly become an unseeded player and his hopes of slipping into match-winning mode without any serious match practice after he toasts his 38th birthday next month seem fanciful, even for the greatest of them all.

Djokovic’s slow decline has been in evidence for some time, but he has managed to serve up the odd performance that suggested he was still competitive at the highest level.

More Tennis News

Novak Djokovic faces rankings slide as two players could overtake him this week

Novak Djokovic, Emma Raducanu and Andrey Rublev face rankings implications after Madrid Open defeats

His win at the 2024 Paris Olympics was an example of his enduring brilliance and his win against Carlos Alcaraz at the Australian Open in January was another example of his flicking abilities to shine against the game’s best.

Yet as Arnaldi added his name to the growing list of unheralded performers who have beaten Djokovic over the last year, even the player who still believes he can win a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam title appeared to be losing faith in the process.

“After you lose a match, you don’t feel good, but I’ve had a few of these this year where I lose in the first round, unfortunately,” said Djokovic.

“Kind of new reality for me, I have to say. You know, trying to win a match or two, not really thinking about getting far in the tournament. It’s a completely different feeling from what I had in 20-plus years of professional tennis, so it’s kind of a challenge for me mentally to really face this kind of sensation on the court, going out early now regularly in the tournaments.

“I guess, the circle of life and the career (smiling), eventually it was going to happen. Now I’m trying to, you know, use this as a driving force for the future. Obviously, Grand Slams, I was saying many times, are the most important tournaments for me.

“Which doesn’t mean that I don’t want to win here, of course I wanted to, but Grand Slams are where I really want to play the best tennis. I’m not sure if I’ll be able to do that in Roland Garros, but I’ll do my best.”

Djokovic’s run to last year’s Wimbledon final and this year’s Australian Open semi-finals will have fuelled his belief that he could still challenge for the title he needs to move past Margaret Court and claim the record for the most Grand Slam wins.

That mindset may already have shifted for Djokovic after the Arnaldi defeat and if he goes out early at Roland Garros and then slips to a defeat at Wimbledon without challenging on grass courts he adores, Djokovic may well conclude the game is up.

He will not want to become a punchbag for younger players he would have beaten with ease in his prime, as while his former rival and now coach Andy Murray seemed happy to battle on against the odds in his final years in tennis after hip surgery, Djokovic does not have the personality to accept a backseat role in the game.

So don’t be surprised if next month’s French Open and Wimbledon represent his final two attempts to get over the winning line to claim a final Grand Slam title and his 100th career title, because what we have seen from Djokovic in regular ATP Tour events over the last year cannot continue for too much longer.

READ NEXT: Novak Djokovic told why it is ‘getting harder and harder every week’ despite being the GOAT

The post Novak Djokovic’s retirement announcement would no longer be a shock appeared first on Tennis365.

Iga Swiatek was facing plenty of pressure heading into the Madrid Open, with the world No 2 embroiled in a rankings battle with both Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff.

Here, we look at how action has panned out so far, and what the five-time Grand Slam champion needs to defend her ranking.

Pre-tournament

Heading into the tournament, Swiatek had what appeared to be a comfortable cushion over both Pegula and Gauff in the WTA Rankings.

The Pole holds 7,383 points in the rankings as of April 21, 2025, the most recent update, with world No 3 Pegula on 6,208 points and No 4 Gauff on 6,073.

However, there can be no doubt that the pressure was on Swiatek heading into the first WTA 1000 event of the clay season.

As the reigning champion, Swiatek has 1,000 points to defend in Madrid, with Gauff only defending 120 points for reaching the fourth round, and Pegula defending nothing after her 2024 withdrawal.

Swiatek fell to 6,393 points in the pre-tournament live rankings, with Gauff on 5,963 and Pegula up to 6,218.

That significantly closed the gap between the three, with it possible that both Pegula and Gauff could overtake Swiatek had results gone their way, potentially pushing Swiatek down to world No 4.

However, the opening week of action has already seen some intriguing twists and turns in the Spanish capital.

Gauff primed to overtake Pegula

Pegula’s Madrid Open campaign came to an underwhelming end on Sunday, with the third seed slumping to a disappointing 6-3, 6-2 loss to Moyuka Uchijima.

That ended any hopes of her moving to a new career-high of world No 2 post-tournament, with her new live total of 6,273 points well off Swiatek’s live total of 6,503 points.

And, Pegula’s early exit could well see her fall to world No 4 in the WTA Rankings.

Current No 4 Gauff is safely through to her first Madrid Open quarter-final following a 6-4, 6-2 triumph over Belinda Bencic on Monday, moving her up to 6,168 points in the live rankings.

And, should she beat seventh seed Mirra Andreeva in her quarter-final, she will move back above Pegula to regain the US No 1 ranking.

Victory for the 21-year-old against Andreeva would move her to 6,343 points, 70 points above Pegula’s post-Madrid tally.

Battle for No 2

With Pegula out of the running, Gauff is the only woman who can now dislodge Swiatek from the world No 2 ranking post-tournament.

Swiatek currently has 6,503 points in the live rankings and will move up to 6,598 should she beat 13th seed Diana Shnaider in the fourth round.

To eclipse Swiatek in the WTA Rankings, Gauff has to reach at least the final.

The American will have 6,603 ranking points should she progress to the final, the first total of points that puts her ahead of both Swiatek’s projected fourth-round and quarter-final tally.

However, if Swiatek were to reach the semi-final, she would hold 6,773 ranking points – meaning that Gauff would have to lift the title to become world No 2.

If the American wins the title, she would hold 6,953 ranking points.

Second seed Swiatek and fourth seed Gauff are on the same side of the draw and are therefore projected to meet in the semi-final.

If Swiatek were to win, she would be guaranteed to stay at world No 2 regardless of how she fared in the championship match.

Madrid Open News

Coco Gauff accomplishes rare feat as she sets Mirra Andreeva Madrid Open showdown

Novak Djokovic, Emma Raducanu and Andrey Rublev face rankings implications after Madrid Open defeats

Swiatek’s potential points tally

Champion: 7,383
Runner-up: 7,033
Semi-final: 6,773
Quarter-final: 6,598
Round 4: 6,503

Gauff’s potential points tally

Champion: 6,953
Runner-up: 6,603
Semi-final: 6,343
Quarter-final: 6,168

Read Next: WATCH: Madrid Open plunged into darkness as national power outage disrupts event

The post Revealed: How Iga Swiatek can remain as WTA world No 2 at the Madrid Open appeared first on Tennis365.

Coco Gauff became the second player to achieve an unusual feat as she progressed to the quarter-finals of the 2025 Madrid Open.

The world No 4 secured a convincing 6-4, 6-2 victory against 42nd-ranked Belinda Bencic in the last 16 of the WTA 1000 tournament.

Gauff broke Bencic twice in each set and lost serve only once as she avenged her defeat to the 28-year-old Swiss in Indian Wells last month. She now leads her head-to-head series with Bencic 3-2.

The American posted dominant serving numbers as she won 85% of points behind her first serve, 65% on her second, and faced just a single break point in her nine service games.

Shortly after Gauff sealed her win, the Madrid Open was affected by the widespread power outages in Spain and Portugal. Her on-court interview was cut short when she was mid-sentence as the microphone lost power.

The exact moment Spain, Portugal and other parts of Europe lost power. pic.twitter.com/B0O4oQDHfh

— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) April 28, 2025

The 21-year-old’s victory saw her reach the last eight of the Madrid Open for the first time in what is her fifth appearance in the Spanish capital.

The 2023 US Open winner has now featured in the quarter-finals at nine of the 10 WTA 1000 tournaments, with the Miami Open the only event in this category at which she is yet to reach the last eight.

Gauff is only the second player to reach the quarter-finals of the Madrid Open women’s singles event after losing the first set in their opening match 0-6.

Tennis News

WATCH: Madrid Open plunged into darkness as national power outage disrupts event

Aryna Sabalenka becomes third active WTA player to win 10 matches against a single opponent

Gauff, who received a first round bye as the fourth seed, prevailed 0-6, 6-2, 7-5 in her second round contest with Dayana Yastremska.

Bethanie Mattek-Sands is the other woman to accomplish this, having beaten Ana Ivanovic 0-6, 6-4, 6-4 in her first round contest at the 2011 Madrid Open before going on to reach the last eight.

Gauff will face world No 7 Mirra Andreeva in the last eight in Madrid after the 17-year-old Russian downed world No 99 Yuliia Starodubtseva 6-1, 6-4 in the fourth round.

Andreeva, who will turn 18 on Tuesday, became the first player to win 10 matches at a single WTA 1000 event before their 18th birthday since the category of tournament was introduced in 2009. She reached the quarter-finals in Madrid last year and the fourth round in 2023.

Gauff holds a 2-0 record against Andreeva, with the pair’s previous encounters coming in 2023 at Roland Garros and the US Open.

READ NEXT: Coco Gauff joins Maria Sharapova and 3 other other WTA players in remarkable stat

The post Coco Gauff accomplishes rare feat as she sets Mirra Andreeva Madrid Open showdown appeared first on Tennis365.

The Madrid Open was brought to a standstill on Monday after being affected by a major power outage that has caused huge disruption across Spain and Portugal.

The tournament was just over an hour into Monday’s Order of Play when the power supply failed, bringing the event to a halt, with major electricity failures across the whole site.

Grigor Dimitrov and Jacob Fearnley were taken off Court Manolo Santana, the main stadium inside the Caja Magica, after it emerged the electronic line calling system was not working.

There was also a further issue on Court Manolo Santana concerning a spider camera, which appeared to be stuck hanging over the centre of the court.

Further incidents include Coco Gauff’s winner’s speech on Court Arantxa Sanchez being disrupted by the failure, with the on-court microphone and courtside billboards switching off.

Footage inside the Caja Magica complex further shows the lack of working lights on site, with spectators forced to use flashlights on their phones to guide them through darkened areas.

Así está ahora mismo la Caja Mágica en pleno @MutuaMadridOpen

Vídeo de @libertaddigital pic.twitter.com/Pp3Rj4Qsnj

— David Vinuesa Malbac (@Dvinuesa) April 28, 2025

It has since emerged that the issue is not solely connected to the Madrid Open and has affected large parts of the Iberian Peninsula, with huge disruption reported across Spain and Portugal, and also in some areas of France.

Reports have claimed that IT systems and even traffic lights have stopped working, in one of the most significant outages faced by the two countries.

On court in Madrid, WTA world No 4 Gauff will be among those relieved to complete her match before the disruption took hold.

Madrid Open News

Alexander Zverev makes big claim after on-court bust-up at Madrid Open

Novak Djokovic’s latest comments suggest his retirement may come sooner than even he expected

The American defeated Belinda Bencic 6-4, 6-2 to reach the quarter-final, while seventh seed Mirra Andreeva had completed a 6-1, 6-4 triumph over Yuliia Starodubtseva before action was brought to a grinding halt.

However, there will be huge frustration for ATP 15th seed Dimitrov, who had held a match point and failed to serve out the match before the power failure.

The Bulgarian was leading qualifier Fearnley 6-4, 5-4 when the incident took place.

Reports from the site indicate that food stalls have been forced to use cash only and are using lights to work, while there is no indication on when the issue could be resolved.

The Estoril Open, an ATP Challenger event held in Portugal, also appears to have been affected by the major outage.

Action at the event started on Monday, with Felix Auger-Aliassime, Nuno Borges, and Joao Fonseca among the biggest names entered in the tournament.

Play cancelled

Approximately three hours after the disruption began, the Madrid Open confirmed that play would be cancelled for the day due to the issue.

The tournament statement read: “For reasons beyond the control of the organisation and in order to guarantee general safety, the nationwide power-cut experienced in Spain on Monday 28 April has forced the cancellation of both the day and night sessions at the Mutua Madrid Open.”

Read Next: Novak Djokovic, Emma Raducanu and Andrey Rublev face rankings implications after Madrid Open defeats

The post WATCH: Madrid Open plunged into darkness as national power outage causes cancellation on Monday appeared first on Tennis365.