Murray withdraws from match vs Djokovic due to illness

Andy Murray has withdrawn from his last-16 clash with Novak Djokovic at the Madrid Open due to illness.

A statement on the tournament's Twitter feed read: "Unfortunately, Andy Murray is unable to take to the Manolo Santana Stadium due to illness."

Murray, who defeated Dominic Thiem and Denis Shapovalov to reach round three, was set to face Djokovic for the 37th time on tour and first since 2017.

The Scot had said after his three-set victory over Shapovalov he "shouldn't have a chance" against Djokovic, claiming "he's world No 1 and I've got a metal hip".

Murray's withdrawal means Djokovic has advanced to the quarter-finals, where he will face either Poland's Hubert Hurkacz or fellow Serb Dusan Lajovic.

The 34-year-old had accepted a wildcard for the Madrid Open, having initially planned to skip the entire clay-court season in order to prepare for the grass-court campaign.

Murray and Djokovic were due to be first on court on Thursday but that spot will now be taken by British No 2 Dan Evans, who takes on Andrey Rublev.

Rafael Nadal said his comeback from a rib problem had been a "rollercoaster" after securing victory in his first match since March, defeating Miomir Kecmanovic 6-1 7-6 to reach the third round in Madrid.

Nadal said: "I leave the match very, very happy. My preparation has not existed. You cannot expect great things at the beginning.

"All trainings have had some ups and downs, it's been a rollercoaster. I have had better days, worse days. At the end of the day, the rib is a problem that limits your game a lot."

The Spaniard will be targeting a record-extending 14th French Open title when the Roland-Garros Grand Slam begins on May 22.

He added: "There are injuries that allow you to do physical work, aerobic