Darwin Blanch vs Rafael Nadal Prediction & Betting Tips - ATP Mutua Madrid Open

Prediction published on 24/04/2024, 07:59  by Steve Ashfield | Modified on 24/04/2024 at 09:00 in ATP Mutua Madrid Open Predictions

Rafael Nadal has won the Madrid Masters more times than any other player. That fact immediately tells you this is a clay court tournament. Nadal takes on wild card Darwin Blanch in the first round of this Masters tournament. The winner will face the tenth-seeded Alex de Minaur who beat Nadal in Barcelona last week. This is only Nadal's third tournament of the year after again sustaining injuries. This is set to be his final year on the tour and he is desperate to stay fit and have a farewell at Roland Garros. Last week saw him win one match before losing in straight sets to de Minaur. He's currently 481st in the live rankings and got into the first round here due to his protected ranking. 

Darwin Blanch received a wild card to play in this tournament. He's even lower than Nadal in the rankings and isn't even in the top 1000. The 16-year-old has only played one ATP Tour event and that saw him lose in round one of the hard court Miami Masters. He has had some success on the ITF tour with a semi-final in a clay court tournament held in Telde. One match this year even saw him beaten by his brother Dali Blanch. This will be a great experience for him but the only way Nadal won't win convincingly if injury strikes again. We go for over 16.5 games to be played.