Day nine of the Mutua Madrid Open produced two very different quarter-finals, with a major upset and a dominant display from a top seed.
The main story was Alexander Blockx continuing his run by defeating defending champion Casper Ruud 6-4, 6-4 to reach his first Masters 1000 semi-final.
Meanwhile, Alexander Zverev cruised past Flavio Cobolli 6-1, 6-4 to book his place in the last four for the fourth time in Madrid.
Here are the quarterfinal results, stats and highlights from Day 9:
Day Nine 2026 Madrid Open Quarter Final Results
| Winner | Loser | Do |
|---|---|---|
| Alexander Blockx | (12) Casper Ruud | 6-4 6-4 |
| (2) Alexander Zverev | (10) Flavio Cobolli | 6-1 6-4 |
Summary of the match
Alexander Blockx def. (12) Casper Ruud 6-4 6-4
Alexander Blockx produced the biggest result of his young career on Thursday, defeating defending champion Casper Ruud 6-4, 6-4 to reach his first ATP Masters 1000 semi-final.
The 21-year-old Belgian qualifier continued his clay court run with a composed and high-quality performance.
Ruud, who had looked decent earlier in the tournament taking out the improving Tsitsipas, couldn’t find his usual rhythm and couldn’t create many opportunities on the return.
I thought he struggled to come up with a coherent game plan to disrupt Blockx; it was just loopy forehands into the backhand swing, and he didn’t look like he could hurt him from the baseline, which is concerning when you probably have a heavy forehand.
Blockx broke early in the first set with a brilliant spinning drop shot and remained in control throughout, converting 3 of 7 break points while remaining solid on his own serve.
This win marks Blockx’s fourth win against a top 20 player this month alone (having previously beaten Auger-Aliassime and Francisco Cerúndolo in Madrid, plus Cobolli in Monte Carlo).
Match statistics
| Key statistics | Casper Ruud | Alexander Blockx |
|---|---|---|
| Winner | 19 | 19 |
| Unforced errors | 23 | 16 |
| Ace | 1 | 2 |
| Double mistake | 1 | 3 |
| 1st serving % | 68% (42/62) | 51% (33/65) |
| 1st Serve point won | 60% (25/42) | 85% (28/33) |
| 2nd serve point won | 50% (10/20) | 44% (14/32) |
| Breakpoints saved | 57% (4/7) | 67% (2/3) |
| Service game | 70% (7/10) | 90% (9/10) |
| 1st return point won | 15% (5/33) | 40% (17/42) |
| 2nd return point won | 56% (18/32) | 50% (10/20) |
| Break point won | 33% (1/3) | 43% (3/7) |
| Return game | 10% (1/10) | 30% (3/10) |
| Pressure points | 50% (5/10) | 50% (5/10) |
| Service points | 56% (35/62) | 65% (42/65) |
| Return points | 35% (23/65) | 44% (27/62) |
| Net points | 72% (13/18) | 85% (11/13) |
| Total points | 46% (58/127) | 54% (69/127) |
| Match point saved | 3 | – |
| Max points in a row | 6 | 8 |
| Total game | 40% (8/20) | 60% (20/12) |
| Max games in a row | 2 | 3 |
Highlights
Alexander Zverev def. (10) Flavio Cobolli 6-1 6-4
Alexander Zverev produced a dominant performance to reach the semi-finals of the Madrid Open, defeating Flavio Cobolli in straight sets.
Just 12 days after losing to the Italian in the Munich semi-finals, Zverev completely flipped the script with a clinical display at the Manolo Santana Stadium.
He was rock solid on serve (dropping just 7 points after his first serve) and dictated play from the baseline, racing through the first set 6-1 and maintaining control in the second to finish 6-4 in 90 minutes.
The German looked sharp and focused throughout, hitting eight aces in the first set alone and rarely allowing Cobolli any rhythm.
Cobolli struggled to really trouble Zverev from the baseline, showing little variation in his game and instead opting to launch on most of his shots, which didn’t quite work. He played better in the second set, and had two break chances when Zverev had his typical wobble as he tried to close it out, but couldn’t convert.
Match statistics
| Key statistics | Flavio Cobolli | Alexander Zverev |
|---|---|---|
| Winner | 11 | 23 |
| Unforced errors | 18 | 19 |
| Ace | 1 | 12 |
| Double mistake | 4 | 2 |
| 1st serving % | 56% (35/62) | 75% (39/52) |
| 1st Serve point won | 49% (17/35) | 82% (32/39) |
| 2nd serve point won | 59% (16/27) | 46% (6/13) |
| Breakpoints saved | 73% (8/11) | 100% (2/2) |
| Service game | 63% (5/8) | 100% (9/9) |
| 1st return point won | 18% (7/39) | 51% (18/35) |
| 2nd return point won | 54% (7/13) | 41% (27/11) |
| Break point won | 0% (0/2) | 27% (3/11) |
| Return game | 0% (0/9) | 38% (3/8) |
| Pressure points | 62% (8/13) | 38% (5/13) |
| Service points | 53% (33/62) | 73% (38/52) |
| Return points | 27% (14/52) | 47% (29/62) |
| Net points | 40% (2/5) | 67% (8/12) |
| Total points | 41% (47/114) | 59% (67/114) |
| Max points in a row | 5 | 7 |
| Total game | 29% (5/17) | 71% (12/17) |
| Max games in a row | 1 | 5 |
Highlights
Madrid Open 2026 day ten semi-final matches
- (1) Jannik Sinner vs (21) Arthur Fils
- Alexander Blockx vs (2) Alexander Zverev
