Casper Ruud makes point about Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer straight after knocking Daniil Medvedev out in Madrid

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Casper Ruud continues to impress in Madrid, as he looks to win his first tour-level title of 2025.

Ever-impressive on clay courts, Ruud has enjoyed a strong tournament in the Spanish capital, securing several big wins.

After beating Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech in his opener, Ruud took down American star Sebastian Korda in straight sets to advance to the fourth round.

There, Ruud picked up his first top-ten win of the season, as he beat another American, Taylor Fritz, 7-5, 6-4.

Another top-ten win followed when Ruud beat Daniil Medvedev to book his place in the semi-finals of the 2025 Madrid Open.

Speaking after the match, the Norwegian ATP Tour star made a very interesting point about two of the sport’s greatest players.

Casper Ruud says the conditions at the Madrid Open ‘don’t suit one particular player’, even Rafael Nadal

Speaking to Sky Sports after his win over Medvedev, Ruud assessed the conditions in Madrid and gave his thoughts on the tournament.

“The conditions here in Madrid, they don’t suit one particular player,” said Ruud.

“Look at Rafa [Nadal], who is the greatest clay courter, I think the number of times he won here is still incredible, but compared to every other clay court tournament, he’s almost at half.”

Nadal won ten or more titles at the three other ‘big’ clay events: Roland Garros, Monte-Carlo, and Rome, but could only manage five victories at his home tournament.

Ruud explained how one of Nadal’s biggest rivals was able to enjoy success in Madrid over the years.

“It shows that big servers, flat players, Roger [Federer], not saying Roger was a bad clay court player, but there are some opportunities for other players to do well here,” he said.

“But if you are as a clay court player, with the spin shots, able to control them and play heavy, I think it’s inevitable that it will be tough for the opponent.”

Federer won three Madrid Open titles as a professional, just two fewer than his legendary Spanish rival.

The Swiss star came out on top in the only ATP tournament played on blue clay, when Federer beat Tomas Berdych in the 2012 Madrid Open final.

Having qualified for his second career Madrid Open semi-final, Ruud shared his thoughts on the current state of play in men’s tennis.

“Whether it’s [Alexander] Zverev or [Carlos] Alcaraz, [Jannik] Sinner, [Jakub] Mensik, [Francisco] Cerundolo, or [Jack] Draper who’s in the quarters, it doesn’t matter, they’re all great players,” he said.

“It’s just a name, it’s just a ranking at the end of the day. Anyone can play well, so it’s fun for tennis, especially for me as a player, to see that there are some openings here and there.

“We’ve had three Masters 1000 champions in three tournaments, odds are that there might be a fourth one here in Madrid. So let’s see what happens

“I’m here, I’m going to try and do my best over this weekend, let’s see what happens.

“It’s really cool, seeing a young player like Mensik winning in Miami, Draper also, every player who has won is a young player, Mensik is the youngest one, it shows that there is really good variation in the game these days.”

All three Masters 1000 events in 2025 have been won by players under the age of 24, as the youngsters on the ATP Tour continue to shine.

• 2025 Indian Wells – Won by Jack Draper (23 years old)
• 2025 Miami Open – Won by Jakub Mensik (19 years old)
• 2025 Monte-Carlo Masters – Won by Carlos Alcaraz (21 years old)

Casper Ruud took inspiration from Alex de Minaur ahead of win over Daniil Medvedev in Madrid

Ruud beat Medvedev in straight sets, 6-3, 7-5, to book his place in the last four of this year’s Madrid Open.

After the match, Ruud revealed he watched one of Medvedev’s recent clay-court defeats in preparation for their quarterfinal clash.

“Daniil [Medvedev] and I, we play a very different game, he plays much flatter than me, he serves well and moves great, so it was an interesting match and very happy with the level,” said Ruud.

“When I watch Daniil, especially in Monte-Carlo this year, maybe not his best match, but he lost to [Alex] de Minaur, quite comfortable for De Minaur, I was looking at what Alex did well.

“Alex, he also plays flat, he slices, he comes a bit to the net, he’s improved his forehand a lot, so he can play it heavier as well.

“So I took a little inspiration from him and thought, how do you beat Daniil so comfortably? It seems almost impossible, but Alex played a really good match there.

“I’m not Alex, of course, and I play my game, but to vary with height, slice, heavy, going for it a little bit more is the game plan, and luckily it was enough to win today.”

De Minaur beat Medvedev 6-2, 6-2, at the Monte-Carlo Masters last month as he secured his place in the quarterfinals.

Ruud followed the gameplan to a tee, as he now looks ahead to his semi-final match in Madrid.

The 26-year-old will take on either Francisco Cerundolo or Jakub Mensik for a place in the Madrid Open final on Friday, May 2.