Madrid Open: Karolina Pliskova the highest-ranked player left in the draw

Sixth seed Karolina Pliskova continued her fine form by beating World number one Simona Halep who lost her first match at the Madrid Open in three years. Simona Halep who won the 2016 and 2017 titles, suffered her first defeat in 15 matches in Madrid. Pliskova won the opponent with 6-4 6-3  and extended her winning run on clay to nine matches. In the semi-final the Czech will face Petra Kvitova in the semi-final who eased past Russia's Daria Kasatkina in the last eight, winning 6-4 6-0.

Rafael Nadal in his way to win a sixth Madrid Open title