Rafael Nadal wins in Madrid homecoming, defeats 16-year-old American Darwin Blanch
by Tennis.com
Tennis.com— Rafael Nadal enjoyed a triumphant return at the Mutua Madrid Open, overcoming Darwin Blanch, 6-1, 6-0 for his second match win since January. The 22-time Grand Slam champion has heavily implied that 2024 will be his final season on tour, but a muscle tear picked up at the Brisbane International took him out of the Australian Open and BNP Paribas Open, sidelining him until last week when he competed at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell. Shaking off a second-round loss to Alex de Minaur in...
The Independent—Who is Darwin Blanch? The 16-year-old playing Rafael Nadal at the Madrid Open today. The teenager, who has already lived in four countries and speaks four languages, plays just his second match on the professional tour against a living legend of the sport
Sky Sports—Rafael Nadal: Spaniard dominates 16-year-old Darwin Blanch to reach second round of Mutua Madrid Open. Rafael Nadal dominated promising 16-year-old wild card Darwin Blanch to claim a masterful 6-1 6-0 victory in the opening round of the Mutua Madrid Open on Thursday. Lefty Blanch was making just his second ATP Masters 1000 appearance in the space of five weeks after his tour-level debut on home soil in Miami. But his 37-year-old idol Nadal, a 22-time Grand Slam champion and a record five-time winner in Madrid, was in no mood for handing out gifts as he wrapped up victory in just 63 minutes. How...
Daily Mail—Rafael Nadal, 37, schools American kid Darwin Blanch, 16, in just 64 minutes to set up a second-round clash with Alex de Minaur at the Madrid Open. Rafael Nadal cruised past Darwin Blanch in straight sets on Thursday. It was the largest age gap between two players at a Masters 1,000-level event