Madrid Open 2014 Schedule & Results: Williams, Sharapova Win; Djokovic Withdraws

In the opening matches of the Madrid Open 2014, defending champion Serena Williams defeated 17-year-old Belinda Bencic of Switzerland 6-2, 6-1. The world No. 1 player won nine of 10 games at one stretch to dominate the first round. She managed to break Bencic five times and had 11 aces. No. 98 seed, Bencic, is the youngest player in the tournament and also joined it for the first time. She broke the champion's serve once in the starting set but the match quickly became lopsided. Bencic lost her own serve five times.

Williams has been the consistent champion of the tournament for two straight years, according to a report by Sports Illustrated. Williams is currently seeking for her 60th career title. Should Williams win the overall, it will be her third time on the clay courts of Madrid. Williams will face Peng Shuai of China for round two after the latter beat Kurumi Nara of Japan 6-2, 6-3.

Maria Sharapova also won over Klara Koukalova 6-1, 6-2 in round one. Koukalova had eight double-faults, which gave Sharapova the opportunity to convert six of eight break points. The no. 8 seed athlete said, "Obviously, the first match at a new tournament is always challenging. It's always an adjustment, especially after playing indoors last week, but I think it was a good start for me today and I'm happy I was able to win in two good sets." Sharapova will face American Christian McHale in the second round.

Williams and Sharapova are crowd favorites to move to the finals of the Madrid Open 2014, although Sharapova has not defeated the America in several years. Based on a report by ABC news, two seeded female players were dismissed in the first round namely No. 12 seed Flavia Pennetta of Italy and No. 7 seed Angelique Kerber of Germany.

In the men's division, No. 2 seed Novak Djokovic withdrew due to an injury in his right wrist, which showed to be a problem for him while playing at Monte Carlo in April. Djokovic said, "I did everything possible in order to play in Madrid. But unfortunately my right arm injury has flared up again."