A clash between Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal on clay was mouthwatering for tennis fans around the world.  After all, the last time the two men met on the clay was way back in 2016, in their last professional match to date. Murray won on that occasion, taking the Madrid Open semi-final 7-5, 6-4.

In an odd twist of fate, this was the two friends’ next meeting, on the virtual clay of the Madrid Open. This time, however, the rules were different. The winner would be the first to three single games, as long as that victory was by two games. End up level at 3-3 and it would be  atie-break to decide the winner.

That method was exactly how Nadal limped into this meeting, but for Andy Murray, the route was much easier, a convincing 3-1 victory over Benoit Paire making him a 4/7 favourite when taking on Nadal. We said yesterday that the price was huge for Murray and should be taken up and we’re happy to report that we weren’t wrong.

In what was a ludicrously one-sided affair, Nadal’s method of getting a return from anywhere wasn’t good enough, Murray’s groundstrokes pinning his opponent to the corners and leading to some friendly banter between the two men.