Clay court return was special, says Roger Federer after winning Madrid opener

Roger Federer described his triumphant return to cay court tennis as a ‘special night’ after beating Richard Gasquet 6-2, 6-3 at the Madrid Open.
The 37-year-old, who last played competitively on the red dirt in 2016, looked like he’d never been away, needing just 53 minutes to send the Frenchman packing.
Afterwards, though, he admitted there were nerves ahead of the match.
“I’ve missed the clay-court season for some time now,” said Federer.
“It was a great return. It was a sort of special night for me.”
“I was actually very calm all day waiting for the match. I only felt the nerves when I was talking about the tactics.
“All of a sudden I was a bit nervous two hours before the match. But it all went away once the match started.”
Follow us on Twitter @T365Official and like our Facebook page.
More from Tennis365:
Latest
-
Wimbledon
Novak Djokovic and Emma Raducanu facing huge rankings drop after Wimbledon decision
Djokovic is almost certain to lose his No.1 ranking.
-
Wimbledon
Comment – Why the removal Wimbledon’s ranking points could backfire on the ATP and WTA
Wimbledon has been stripped of its ATP ranking points following the decision to ban Russian and Belarusian players.
-
Wimbledon
Wimbledon didn’t want to ‘risk safety of players’ or ‘success being used as propaganda by Russian regime’
Wimbledon has hit back at the ATP and WTA with a statement of their own.
-
Wimbledon
WTA statement as women’s body also strips Wimbledon of ranking points over Russian player ban
WTA also has harsh words for Wimbledon after stripping grass-court major of ranking points.
-
ATP Tour
ATP statement: Wimbledon slammed for ‘undermining integrity of the ATP Ranking system’
ATP unimpressed by Wimbledon.
-
Wimbledon
Wimbledon thrown into chaos as ATP strips Slam of ranking points over Russian and Belarusian player ban
Big, big news as players won’t earn points for competing at Wimbledon.
-
French Open
Iga Swiatek made French Open favourite by former British No 1 Tim Henman
Tim Henman has been impressed by the progress in Iga Swiatek’s game.
-
French Open
Naomi Osaka admits trepidation ahead of return to Roland Garros
Naomi Osaka took questions at Roland Garros for the first time since her 2021 walkout.
-
French Open
Iga Swiatek prepared to handle the heat of being French Open favourite
The world number one has won five successive tournaments and 28 straight matches.
-
French Open
Rafael Nadal praying the pain stays away in bid to win 14th French Open
The 35-year-old was troubled by the issue in Rome last week.