Soccer royalty Zinedine Zidane & Vinicius Jr., King Felipe VI of Spain descend on Madrid Open to watch Rafael Nadal in action in 2R battle

As Rafael Nadal pursues his sixth Madrid Open title, his second-round match against Alex De Minaur attracted dignitaries such as Zinedine Zidane, Vinicius Jr., and King Felipe VI of Spain.

On Saturday, Nadal defeated World No.11 Alex De Minaur in the second round of the 2024 edition of the Madrid Open with a score of 7-6 (8-6), 6-3. This was a rematch for the two players, with De Minaur previously knocking the 37-year-old out in the second round of the Barcelona Open just ten days prior.

While the match was ongoing, Tennis TV posted a video on X (formerly Twitter) that featured King Felipe VI of Spain alighting from a vehicle and exchanging pleasantries with the organizers of the Madrid Open before walking into the stadium.

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In another video posted on X by ATP Tour, French and Real Madrid football icon Zinedine Zidane and Real Madrid star Vinicius Jr. were spotted sitting in the stands and watching on.

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After the match, while speaking to Sky Sports, Nadal expressed his happiness in being able to compete against a player like Alex de Minaur. The Spaniard, who underwent surgery in 2023 and has pulled out of a couple of tournaments this season due to injury, was also optimistic about his fitness and said that he will take it step by step

“I am super happy to be competitive against a player like Alex de Minaur, Tennis hasn't been the issue, it is more the physical issues. If I am able to play tennis, I will see how far I can go. Step by step, let's see how I recover," He said

Rafael Nadal will now face Pedro Cachín in the third round of the 2024 Madrid Open

2024 Mutua Madrid Open

Following Rafael Nadal's victory over Alex De Minaur on Saturday, he will now be facing 29-year-old Argentine player Pedro Cachín in the third round of the 2024 Madrid Open.

Nadal began his 2024 season at the Brisbane International, where he reached the quarterfinals but was knocked out by Jordan Thompson. The 37-year-old then sustained an injury and subsequently missed the Australian Open, Indian Wells Open, and Miami Open. Nadal returned from injury at the Barcelona Open, where he defeated Flavio Cobolli before being knocked out by De Minaur. He then proceeded to the Madrid Open, where he has now defeated 16-year-old Darwin Blanch and Alex De Minaur.

On the other hand, Pedro Cachín has struggled with form this season as he has won only two matches, both of which have come at the ongoing Madrid Open, and lost ten in his previous tournaments. He eliminated Sebastian Ofner in the first round and then knocked out American star Frances Tiafoe in the second round to set up a third-round tie with the 22-time Grand Slam champion. This will also be the first time they are facing each other on the ATP Tour.