TennisSection previews the 2021 Madrid Open as Rafael Nadal (1) meets Carlos Alcaraz (WC) in the Second Round on Wednesday, May 5th, 2021.
This is going to be an incredible battle between the most dominant player in the history of Spanish Tennis, and one of the brightest future starts in Spanish Tennis. Will Carlos Alcaraz be able to come out here and cause the biggest upset of his young career against his idol, or will Rafael Nadal start his 2021 Madrid Open campaign off dominantly?
Carlos Alcaraz was so dominating in his First Round match against the very experienced Adrian Mannarino, beating the Frenchman in straight sets 6-4/6-0. Carlos Alcaraz is the youngest player to have ever won a match at the Madrid Open, and he is just improving with every tournament that he plays in. Carlos Alcaraz has an amazing game which relies on raw power and incredible movement around the court. The young Spaniard will be very excited to come into this Second Round match here at the 2021 Madrid Open as he will now meet his idol, Rafael Nadal.
Rafael Nadal will be coming into the 2021 Madrid Open with a lot of confidence in his game after being able to lift his 12th Barcelona Open title just a couple weeks ago, coming through a 3 hour match against Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Final. Rafael Nadal needed the Barcelona Open to push him to his limits, and understand where he needs to get his game up to speed in order to be ready for these big tournaments. The King of Clay knows that the road will still be tough, especially here in Madrid where the conditions are much different to any other clay tournament due to the altitude, but he will also know he is the favourite and he will give it his best shot, especially against a very young and determined Carlos Alcaraz.
Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz have never met before, with this being their first meeting on the ATP Tour. Carlos Alcaraz idolizes Rafael Nadal and he is compared to him as he is seen to be Spain’s next big thing in tennis. However, this is always a tough spot to be in for a youngster, as they get overwhelmed most times by the situation. Here at the 2021 Madrid Open, I see Alcaraz not being able to handle the pressure of knowing exactly who is on the opposite end of the court, and knowing he will most likely lose even if he is at his best. This will allow Rafa to get the job done easily and make his way to the Third Round.
Free Tennis Pick and Prediction: Rafael Nadal in 2 Sets.
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