Roger Federer won his first game on clay in three years against Richard Gasquet at the Madrid Open. Reuters
Roger Federer won his first game on clay in three years against Richard Gasquet at the Madrid Open. Reuters
Roger Federer won his first game on clay in three years against Richard Gasquet at the Madrid Open. Reuters
Roger Federer won his first game on clay in three years against Richard Gasquet at the Madrid Open. Reuters

Roger Federer beats Richard Gasquet at Madrid Open to make winning return on clay


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Roger Federer shook off a brief bout of pre-match jitters as he returned to clay after a three-year absence, posting a 6-2, 6-3 win over Richard Gasquet on Tuesday at the Madrid Open.

The 20-time Grand Slam champion needed just 52 minutes to brush Gasquet aside in the second round, but confessed he had to control his emotions during afternoon match strategy sessions with his team.

"I was very calm all day, but two hours before, I was feeling it a bit. But that was the only time," Federer said.

"The nerves went away quickly, I'm just happy I started well.

"I'm glad to be back," said the three-time Madrid champion who last played on clay almost three years ago, losing to Dominic Thiem in the Rome third round on May 12, 2016.

Federer skipped the dirt for two full seasons to concentrate on his grass court form, winning Wimbledon in 2017.

He claimed the Madrid title in 2006, 2009, and 2012.

"I've been missing the clay, this is a great return, it's a special night for me," he said.

Federer swept up the opening set in 23 minutes and broke Frenchman Gasquet - who had defeated him twice on clay - for 5-3 in the second before serving it out a game later.

Federer has won 18 of 21 meetings with Gasquet, just back from six months out with injury.

"I've trained well, but that's not like a match. The points here are quicker and first matches anywhere can be tricky," said Federer."But I felt really natural on the clay tonight."

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Lowest Test scores

26 - New Zealand v England at Auckland, March 1955

30 - South Africa v England at Port Elizabeth, Feb 1896

30 - South Africa v England at Birmingham, June 1924

35 - South Africa v England at Cape Town, April 1899

36 - South Africa v Australia at Melbourne, Feb. 1932

36 - Australia v England at Birmingham, May 1902

36 - India v Australia at Adelaide, Dec. 2020

38 - Ireland v England at Lord's, July 2019

42 - New Zealand v Australia in Wellington, March 1946

42 - Australia v England in Sydney, Feb. 1888

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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
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  4. Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
  5. Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
  6. The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
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*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year

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Company: Justmop.com

Date started: December 2015

Founders: Kerem Kuyucu and Cagatay Ozcan

Sector: Technology and home services

Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai

Size: 55 employees and 100,000 cleaning requests a month

Funding:  The company’s investors include Collective Spark, Faith Capital Holding, Oak Capital, VentureFriends, and 500 Startups. 

Australia squads

ODI: Tim Paine (capt), Aaron Finch (vice-capt), Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Nathan Lyon, Glenn Maxwell, Shaun Marsh, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, D’Arcy Short, Billy Stanlake, Marcus Stoinis, Andrew Tye.

T20: Aaron Finch (capt), Alex Carey (vice-capt), Ashton Agar, Travis Head, Nic Maddinson, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, D’Arcy Short, Billy Stanlake, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Swepson, Andrew Tye, Jack Wildermuth.

Also on December 7 to 9, the third edition of the Gulf Car Festival (www.gulfcarfestival.com) will take over Dubai Festival City Mall, a new venue for the event. Last year's festival brought together about 900 cars worth more than Dh300 million from across the Emirates and wider Gulf region – and that first figure is set to swell by several hundred this time around, with between 1,000 and 1,200 cars expected. The first day is themed around American muscle; the second centres on supercars, exotics, European cars and classics; and the final day will major in JDM (Japanese domestic market) cars, tuned vehicles and trucks. Individuals and car clubs can register their vehicles, although the festival isn’t all static displays, with stunt drifting, a rev battle, car pulls and a burnout competition.