Madrid Open: Medvedev starts his campaign with win against Vavassori

MADRID: World No. 3 Daniil Medvedev made a rock-solid start to his Madrid Open campaign with a 6-4, 6-3 win against Italian qualifier Andrea Vavassori, here on Saturday.

Medvedev stayed patient against the World No. 164 Vavassori, notching a late break of serve in each set to complete an 82-minute triumph.

Vavassori had claimed the biggest win of his career against Andy Murray in the first round at the Caja Magica, but the second-seeded Medvedev's combination of huge serving and relentless baseline hitting proved a step too far for the Italian.

"I played well today. I felt good," said Medvedev, who saved all three break points he faced in his second-round win.

"There were some tight moments in the match, but when we had rallies from the baseline, I felt like many times I was in control. I'm really happy about my level," he added.

With the win, Medvedev improved to 2-3 in Madrid, where he also reached the third round in 2021. Despite frequently acknowledging he does not feel his most comfortable on clay, the 19-time tour-level titlist hopes his opening victory can be the foundation for a bigger run in the Spanish capital.

"I just want to play my best. Sure, everyone is saying here I should like it a little bit more than other clay courts because the serve goes a bit faster, the court is faster. So far I haven't done well in Madrid, but today was a great match and I just hope for more matches like this in the next two weeks," said Medvedev.

The 27-year-old is now 32-4 for the year. He is chasing his fifth tour-level trophy of the season in Madrid, where he now prepares for a third-round clash against another qualifier, Alexander Shevchenko.