Auger-Aliassime advances to 3rd round of Madrid Open, downing Frenchman Mannarino | CBC Sports

Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime defeated 19th-seed Adrian Mannarino of France on Saturday in a men’s second-round match at the Madrid Open.

The Montreal native earned the victory in straight sets 6-0, 6-4.

Auger-Aliassime will now move on to face Jakub Menšík on Monday after the Czech athlete upset ninth-seed Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria in three sets on Saturday.

WATCH | Auger-Aliassime tops Mannarino:

Earlier on Saturday, Canadian tennis player Leylah Fernandez was ousted in the third round in a three-set loss to Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur.

The eight-seeded Jabeur outlasted the 21-year-old from Montreal for a 7-5, 2-6, 6-4 victory that lasted two hours 24 minutes in Spain.

Jabeur had the advantage in first return points won at almost 33 per cent to 26 for Fernandez, who was the 32nd seed in the tournament.

WATCH l Fernandez ousted by Jabeur in 3 sets:

Canada’s Leylah Fernandez falls in three sets to Ons Jabeur at Madrid Open

Despite one of the best shots of the match, a subpar final set dropped Fernandez’s career mark to 0-3 against Jabeur.

Denis Shapovalov of Richmond Hill, Ont., was already assured a third-round appearance match after a straight sets win over Argentina’s Tomas Etcheverry.

His next opponent is fourth-seeded Alexander Zverev of Germany.

Nadal avenges loss to de Minaur

Rafael Nadal tore his headband off, thrust his arms in the air, and soaked up the cheers. It was only a second-round win, but coming from where Nadal had been just a few weeks ago when he couldn’t even get on the court, he could have been savouring a trophy.

He had just beaten 11th-ranked Alex de Minaur 7-6 (6), 6-3, avenging a straight-set loss to the Australian less than two weeks ago.

Nadal is no longer aiming to add to his 92 titles after being decimated by injuries in recent years. The 37-year-old just wants to play like Rafael Nadal, or as close to that as he can. So he is going forward game by game, measuring his efforts to avoid an injury that would likely force his definitive retirement, with the ultimate goal of being competitive one more time at next month’s French Open.

“I have been through some very difficult months when there were moments when I didn’t see the reason to continue, but I had the dream of experiencing feelings like this again and above all at home,” Nadal said. “It was incredible.”

Nadal was playing just his fourth competitive match since his latest injury layoff in his farewell season.

Not 100 per cent this week

De Minaur beat Nadal just 11 days before in Barcelona, where the Spaniard returned to the courts for the first time in more than three months. Nadal looked much better this time around.

Before starting the tournament, Nadal said this week he was not 100 per cent and, “If it wasn’t Madrid, maybe I wouldn’t play.” He added he would have to feel even better to play at Roland Garros.

Nadal got a straight-set win over American teenager Darwin Blanch on Thursday, but De Minaur was much stiffer competition and the tension in the stands of Manolo Santana Stadium was palpable.

“I’m super happy to be able to be competitive against a great player like Alex, play over two hours,” Nadal said after his first win over a top-20 opponent since 2022. “It means a lot to me and the atmosphere here is just a joke, so I can’t thank enough everybody here.”

Nadal has won a record five times in Madrid, the last time in 2017.

Next up will he face Pedro Cachin in the third round after the Argentine beat Frances Tiafoe 7-6 (1), 3-6, 6-4.

Top seeds Sinner and Swiatek advance

Top-seeded Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek brushed aside their first opponents.

Sinner downed fellow Italian Lorenzo Sonego 6-0, 6-3 in the second round to improve to 5-0 against his countryman. The Australian Open champion had a first-round bye.

Third-seeded Daniil Medvedev rallied past Matteo Arnaldi 2-6, 6-4, 6-4. He will meet Sebastian Korda next.

Seventh-ranked Stefanos Tsitsipas was upset 6-4, 6-4 by Brazilian qualifier Thiago Monteiro, ranked 118th. Tsitsipas won Monte Carlo this month before reaching the final of Barcelona last week.

Swiatek made quick work of Sorana Cirstea 6-1, 6-1 to reach the women’s last 16.

The top-ranked Swiatek, who lost last year’s final to Aryna Sabalenka, improved her record this season to 26-4. She will next face Sara Sorribes Tormo on Monday after the Spaniard ousted Victoria Azarenka 7-6 (0), 6-3.

Swiatek is preparing to make a run for a third consecutive title at the French Open next month. The Madrid Open is the only major European clay tournament the Pole has yet to win.

Top-10 players Maria Sakkari and Jelena Ostapenko also advanced along with Madison Keys. Sakkari ended Sloane Stephens’s seven-match winning run.