An aching Roger Federer made a seamless transition from slick blue clay to the slower red dirt on Wednesday as he saw off Carlos Berlocq of Argentina 6-3 6-4 to reach the third round of the Rome Masters.
World number one Victoria Azarenka suffered a blow to her French Open preparations when she was forced to pull out of the Italian Open with a right shoulder injury.
Swapping the slippery blue clay of Madrid for the robust Roman dust, Novak Djokovic says he is "right where I want to be" as he chases French Open glory later this month.
Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and others who have complained about the blue clay at the Madrid Open are "weenies", according to former women's No 1 Serena Williams.
After capturing the Madrid Open title and knowing he will climb back above Rafael Nadal to No 2 in the world, Roger Federer has set his sights on reclaiming the top ranking.
A fired-up Serena Williams sent out a warning to the young pretenders of women's tennis when she powered to a crushing 6-1 6-3 victory over world number one Victoria Azarenka to win the Madrid Open.
Roger Federer left a lasting impression on the Madrid Open's controversial blue claycourt when he ground out a thrilling 3-6 7-5 7-5 victory over Czech Tomas Berdych to match Rafa Nadal's record of 20 Masters titles. 
Serena humbles Azarenka in finale
After capturing the Madrid Open title and knowing he will climb back above Rafa Nadal to number two in the world, Roger Federer has set his sights on reclaiming the top ranking.
Serena Williams blew away fellow former number one Maria Sharapova 6-1 6-3 to join top seed Victoria Azarenka in the semi-finals at the Madrid Open on Friday.
Novak Djokovic's frustration with the controversial blue clay at the Madrid Masters reached new heights after the world number one was beaten 7-6 6-3 by fellow Serb Janko Tipsarevic in the quarter-finals on Friday.
Chinese tennis star Li Na bowed out of the Madrid Open after losing 6-3, 3-6, 3-6 to top seed Victoria Azarenka in a thrilling quarter-final which lasted just five minutes short of two hours.
Serena Williams overcame a lethargic start to upset fellow former world number one Caroline Wozniacki at the Madrid Open on Thursday and set up a quarter-final meeting with old foe Maria Sharapova.
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