Sinner reaches Madrid Open quarter-finals, beats Norrie 6-2, 7-5

Jannik Sinner beat Cameron Norrie 6-2, 7-5 on Tuesday to reach the Madrid Open quarter-finals in 87 minutes. (atptour.com) The world No. 1 took control early on Manolo Santana Stadium, where he and Norrie started shortly after 11 a.m. local time in their first ATP head-to-head meeting. (atptour.com) (lta.org.uk) Sinner did not face a break point in the first set, then recovered after dropping serve from 3-2 up in the second. At 5-5, Norrie double-faulted at 15/30 and Sinner converted his third break point of the game. (atptour.com) The win pushed Sinner's Masters 1000 winning streak to 25 matches and his tour-level winning streak to 20. ATP said he became the second man to win his first 20 Masters 1000 matches of a season after Novak Djokovic in 2011 and 2015. (atptour.com) Sinner arrived in Madrid after Masters 1000 titles in Indian Wells, Miami and Monte Carlo, and ATP said he is bidding to become the first player to win five straight Masters 1000 crowns. Olympics.com added that he also won Paris late last season. (atptour.com) (olympics.com) He said the 11 a.m. start was unusual but manageable, telling ATP, "for me it doesn't matter what time" and calling it "a good performance today." He also said he and Norrie knew what to expect because they had practiced together at recent events. (atptour.com) (olympics.com) Next up, Sinner was set to face Rafael Jodar or Vit Kopriva for a place in the semi-finals. Olympics.com said he has never advanced beyond the quarter-finals in Madrid. (atptour.com) (olympics.com) For Norrie, the loss still followed a solid clay stretch. The Lawn Tennis Association said the Brit had also reached the Barcelona quarter-finals and had climbed to No. 19 in the live rankings, with a return to the top 20 in sight. (lta.org.uk) Sinner left Madrid's fourth round with another straight-sets win and a chance to push deeper than he ever has at the tournament. (olympics.com)