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Alexander Blockx’s dream run in Madrid continues with the 21-year-old Belgian beating the defending champion Casper Ruud 6-4, 6-4 in the quarter-finals of the Madrid Open on Thursday.
The 69th-ranked emerging talent had not won an ATP Tour match on clay before his third-round run in Monte Carlo three weeks ago. He has also defeated the third-seeded Felix Auger-Aliassime and Francisco Cerúndolo on his way to the last four in the Spanish capital.
“To be honest, I’m just happy with being here,” Blockx said. “Even winning my first match here. I barely escaped in the first round and I was happy about that already. Semi-finals is something I wouldn’t have even dreamed of to begin with.”
Blockx became the fourth lowest-ranked player to reach the men’s last four in Madrid, according to the ATP. He is the second man born in 2005 or later to reach the semis at a Masters 1000 after Jakub Mensik, who won in Miami in 2025.
“I’m proud of how I’ve played these past couple of matches,” Blockx said. “The conditions suit me well here. I feel like it’s clay which is slow, so I have time to settle and hit my shots, go for my shots. At the same time, it’s quite fast with the altitude and the heat sometimes. It’s the perfect combination for me.”
Blockx is 4-2 against top 20 opponents, with all four of his wins coming this month. “I thought from the first game I was hitting my ball quite well, and I made [lots of] returns,” he said. “Once I got my first game, I was really into the match.”
With the loss, Ruud exits the top 20 for the first time since May 2021.
Meanwhile, Carlos Alcaraz was back at the Madrid Open on Thursday – but only as a spectator to watch younger brother Jaime compete in an under-16 tournament. The world No 2 was in the stands at Court 7 as Jaime Alcaraz defeated fellow Spaniard Pol Mas 6-3, 6-3. Other relatives were on hand to watch the tournament debut of the 14-year-old Jaime.
The older Alcaraz brother withdrew from the Madrid Open because of a right wrist injury, which will prevent him from defending his French Open title in three weeks.
A disciplined Mirra Andreeva saw off a late challenge from Hailey Baptiste to prevail 6-4, 7-6 (8) in a battle of nerves to reach the final of the Madrid Open. Andreeva, who turned 19 on Wednesday, is 12-1 on clay so far this season, with a title run in Linz, a semi-final showing in Stuttgart and now a final appearance in Madrid, where she awaits Anastasia Potapova or Marta Kostyuk.
“I feel so much adrenaline inside, I feel like I’m still nervous,” Andreeva said after her victory. “Honestly, I’m just so happy that I won … I’m very happy with how I served today.”
Baptiste had shocked the world No 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the quarter-finals, but the 24-year-old struggled as the ninth seed Andreeva conceded only two points on serve in the first set. The American stood firm until the seventh game, when her forehand landed wide, handing Andreeva a break point. The former French Open semi-finalist sent a perfect backhand down the line to earn the decisive break that sealed the set.
Baptiste, who made 16 unforced errors in the first set, continued to struggle in the second, handing Andreeva a break for a 3-2 lead. But she fended off a match point in the ninth game before Andreeva, serving for the set, double faulted and botched a smash before Baptiste landed two perfect winners to get her first break of the match, making it 5-5.
The second set reached a tie-break and a newly confident Baptiste won four points straight before Andreeva fought back with precise backhands near the sidelines and saved three set points.
Baptiste fired down an ace to save a match point but hit a return long as Andreeva clinched victory, reaching the final of a WTA 1000 tournament for the third time after winning the Dubai Championships and the Indian Wells Open last year.
