The Madrid Open has been full of surprises this year, and not all of them came from the players. Fans have already seen a few major shocks on the courts, starting with Novak Djokovic crashing out early after a second-round defeat to Matteo Arnaldi. On the women’s side, it wasn’t any calmer, with big names like Jasmine Paolini, last year’s semifinalist Elena Rybakina, and third seed Jessica Pegula all bowing out in the second round. Amid all the chaos, one player seems to be finding her groove again. Coco Gauff is making serious moves in the Spanish capital, reaching the quarterfinals after a sweet revenge win over Belinda Bencic. But just as she was celebrating her big moment, everything suddenly went dark—literally.
Before facing Bencic, Gauff, the fourth seed, had a first-round bye and posted straight-set wins over Dayana Yastremska and Ann Li in the second and third rounds, respectively. The 21-year-old punched her ticket to the last eight on Monday, April 28, after defeating Bencic 6-4, 6-2. It was a satisfying win for the American, who was knocked out by Bencic earlier this year at Indian Wells.
After her match, Gauff stuck around for her on-court interview, smiling and chatting with the crowd. She shared her simple but effective pre-match routine: “I definitely had avocado toast and what else did I – Oh, fruits! So that was pretty much it. It was an early start,” she said. “I didn’t sleep that well last night, so maybe I just need to like not get a lot of sleep…” (inaudible). Right in the middle of her chat, Coco Gauff’s mic cut out as a sudden power outage hit the venue. But it wasn’t just the tennis center—Spain and Portugal were plunged into a massive blackout that disrupted transit, jammed roads, and delayed flights. With no clear cause an hour in, officials scrambled to restore power, admitting a cyberattack couldn’t be ruled out as investigations got underway.
The exact moment Spain, Portugal and other parts of Europe lost power. pic.twitter.com/B0O4oQDHfh
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) April 28, 2025
Meanwhile, the Madrid Open had no choice but to suspend matches until not before 3:30 p.m. local time. The blackout hit the Manzanares Park Tennis Center hard, knocking out the electronic line-calling systems. Fans took to social media, posting eerie pictures of the darkened hallways inside the stadium. Grigor Dimitrov, the World No. 16, was leading Jack Fearnley 6-4, 5-4 when the lights went out. Although they could have continued using line judges, a camera stuck in the players’ eyeline made it impossible. After a brief wait, both players left the court, and officials eventually confirmed that play was suspended for the day.
Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka, and Madison Keys, among others, are still waiting for their matches to begin. Luckily for Gauff, her match was already done by then. Only one other women’s fourth-round match wrapped up before the blackout—and it just so happens that it was her next opponent’s match.
Coco Gauff sets up an exciting quarterfinal clash with Mirra Andreeva
Mirra Andreeva, the rising star who’s been on a tear this season, also reached the quarterfinals just in time. The 17-year-old, who has already lifted trophies at the Dubai and Indian Wells WTA 1000 tournaments this year, booked her spot with a routine 6-1, 6-4 win over Ukraine’s Yuliia Starodubtseva. It took her just one hour and 35 minutes to get the job done.
The two haven’t crossed paths since 2023, which happened to be Andreeva’s breakthrough year on the Hologic WTA Tour. Both of their previous meetings came on the Grand Slam stage. Andreeva had qualified for the main draw at Roland Garros to make her Slam debut, and her run ended at the hands of Gauff, who came back to win 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-1 in the third round. A few months later, Gauff repeated the result at the US Open, this time with a more straightforward 6-3, 6-2 victory in the second round.
Fast forward to now, and it’s a whole different story. Two years later, they’re set to meet again—only this time, both as Top 10 players. Andreeva enters the clash riding a five-match winning streak against Top 10 opponents. The American, on the other hand, has dropped her only match against a fellow Top 10 player this season, losing to Jasmine Paolini in the Stuttgart quarterfinals last week.
The lights may have gone out in Madrid, but for Coco Gauff, things are just starting to shine bright. Will she keep the momentum going against a red-hot Andreeva?
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