Madrid Open 2025 Day 3 Recap – Perfect Tennis

Day three in Madrid brought the top seeds into the fray, and Sascha Zverev started his campaign for a third title in the Spanish capital with a ruthless 6-2, 6-2 dispatch of Roberto Bautista Agut.

Thirteenth seed Arthur Fils wasn’t able to back up his recent form as he fell to Comesana, with the Argentine recovering from 1-5 down in the first set to come through 7-6(4), 6-4 but the biggest shock of the day was Holger Rune, retiring with a leg injury after losing thre first set to Flavio Cobolli 6-2.

Despite it only being month four of the season, we’ve already had several withdrawals, retirements, and walkovers in Madrid with Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev both essentially receiving a bye to the third round, as Laslo Djere and Gael Monfils handed the Russian pair a walkover.

Full results and recap below.

Day Two 2025 Madrid Open Round of 64 Results

Winner
Loser
Scoreline

Alexander Zverev (1)
Roberto Bautista Agut
6-2 6-2

Alejandro Davidovich Fokina (28)
Nuno Borges
6-2 6-3

Francisco Cerundolo (20)
Harold Mayot (Q)
6-3 6-4

Francisco Comesana (20)
Arthur Fils (13)
7-6(4) 6-4

Ben Shelton (12)
Mariano Navone
4-6 7-6(5) 6-3

Jakub Mensik (22)
Ethan Quinn (Q)
7-6(4) 6-1

Alexander Bublik
Alexei Popyrin (25)
6-4 7-6(4)

Andrey Rublev (7)
Gael Monfils
Walkover

Taylor Fritz (3)
Christopher O’Connell
6-1 6-4

Benjamin Bonzi
Hubert Hurkacz (27)
6-4 7-5

Sebastian Korda (23)
Federico Cina (WC)
6-3 3-6 6-1

Casper Ruud (14)
Arthur Rinderknech
6-3 6-4

Daniil Medvedev (9)
Laslo Djere
Walkover

Juan Manuel Cerundolo (Q)
Felix Auger-Aliassime
7-6(5) 6-4

Brandon Nakashima (31)
Sebastian Ofner (PR)
6-3 7-6(3)

Holger Rune (8)
Flavio Cobolli
6-2 RET

Zverev Starts Strong

As I expected, Sascha Zverev made short work of Roberto Bautista Agut, storming into the third round with a ruthless 6-2, 6-2 demolition in 62 minutes.

Fresh off his Munich title last week, Zverev was in scintillating form, firing 32 winners to Bautista Agut’s measly four and winning 81% (22/27) of his first-serve points.

Just too good from the two-time champion, and Zverev looks to be back in form after his post-Australian Open slump.

It’s still early days, as RBA is no longer a force at the ATP level (and never really was on clay), so there will be tougher tests to come. However, the German has a realistic shot at his third Madrid crown.

[It was] a good match, I knew I had to focus against Roberto. I knew that it was going to be a tough challenge, and I’m very happy with the win. This is my favourite centre court in the world, I only lost twice here in my entire life. I hope that stays the way throughout the next 10 days and that I can continue playing good tennis. As long as I do that I’m happy. Zverev on his win.

Shelton Negates Navone

I had Ben Shelton down as a potential upset on Friday, as Mariano Navone is a decent clay court player, and even though Madrid isn’t exactly typical clay court conditions, I thought he would cause problems. 

When Navone served for the match at 5-4 in the second set, that looked like a solid shout, but Shelton had other ideas, unleashing a booming forehand pass that sent the crowd wild, sparking his comeback. He broke to love at 3-3 in the decider and sealed the win.

I appreciate the fact that Shelton has progressed from being a complete no-hoper on clay a couple of seasons ago to significantly improving by actually competing in tournaments on the surface.

Many Americans who prefer hard courts often skip half of the clay season, but Shelton has arrived early in Europe to secure matches, and he has become significantly stronger. He is now 3-0 against Navone and 10-0 against Argentines across all levels.

Other Matches of Note

Francisco Cerundolo (20) def. Harold Mayot (Q) 6-3, 6-4: Cerundolo eased past the qualifier, setting up a third-round Argentine showdown with Francisco Comesana.

Francisco Comesana def. Arthur Fils (13) 7-6(4), 6-4: Comesana staged a stunning comeback from 1-5 down in the first set to upset the 13th seed.

Jakub Mensik (22) def. Ethan Quinn (Q) 7-6(4), 6-1: The 19-year-old Czech fired 14 aces and won 75% (33/44) of first-serve points in an 80-minute rout, his first win since Miami. He’s up against Shelton next.

Alexander Bublik def. Alexei Popyrin (25) 6-4, 7-6(4): Bublik’s flair outfoxed the 25th seed in a tight battle.

Taylor Fritz (3) def. Christopher O’Connell 6-1, 6-4: Fritz, back from an abdominal injury, looked sharp in his clay opener. He faces Benjamin Bonzi next.

Benjamin Bonzi def. Hubert Hurkacz (27) 6-4, 7-5: Bonzi scored a solid upset over the 27th seed, earning a crack at Fritz.

Sebastian Korda (23) def. Federico Cina (WC) 6-3, 3-6, 6-1: Korda navigated a tricky wild card to reach the third round.

Casper Ruud (14) def. Arthur Rinderknech 6-3, 6-4: Ruud stayed perfect (4-0) against the Frenchman, boosting his bid to return to the top 10.

Juan Manuel Cerundolo (Q) def. Felix Auger-Aliassime 7-6(5), 6-4: The Argentine qualifier shocked last year’s runner-up, dropping Auger-Aliassime to No. 26 in the live rankings. He’s having a shocker at M1000 level this season.

Highlights

Madrid Open Day Four: Round of 64 Matches