Britain’s Fearnley made a strong start at the Madrid Open, defeating China’s Buyunchaokete 6-3, 7-6(2) in the men’s singles first round on Thursday. The victory marks Fearnley’s third win over Buyunchaokete and his first against him in an Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) Tour match.
Fearnley dominated the first set with an impressive 80% first-serve success rate, breaking Buyunchaokete twice to secure a 1-0 lead. The second set saw Buyunchaokete adapt to Fearnley’s serve, keeping the match competitive and pushing it to a tiebreak. However, Fearnley maintained his composure, winning the tiebreak 7-2 to advance to the second round.
In his next match, Fearnley will face the Czech Republic’s No. 19 seed, Tomas Machac.
Meanwhile, Japanese veteran Kei Nishikori, 35, celebrated a milestone by clinching his 450th career win. Nishikori defeated Australia’s Aleksandar Vukic 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, kicking off his European clay-court season with a victory. He becomes the third man born in 1989 or later to reach 450 wins, joining Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov and Germany’s Alexander Zverev.
“I had no idea,” Nishikori said about his achievement. “I just try to play one match at a time, and that’s a lot, yes.”
Nishikori is set to face Canada’s No. 29 seed, Denis Shapovalov, in the next round.
In a surprising turn, world No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz of Spain has withdrawn from the Madrid Open due to injuries. The 21-year-old announced he is focusing on recovering from hamstring and groin issues ahead of defending his title at the French Open starting on May 25.
“I couldn’t practice the entire week and found out I had hamstring and groin injuries. I needed to listen to my body and make the right decision,” Alcaraz said. “On Monday, I’ll have more medical tests, and after that, we will have a better idea on how long I’ll be out. It hurts me not to be able to play here in Madrid in front of my people, my friends, and my family.”
