The world No 1 defeated 23rd-ranked Cameron Norrie 6-2, 7-5 in the last 16 at the ATP Masters 1000 event, extending his winning streak to 20 matches and his Masters 1000 run to 25.
Sinner’s victory, in his first meeting with the 30-year-old Brit, sees the 24-year-old reach his second Madrid Open quarter-final as he continues his pursuit of a maiden title at the tournament.
In his on-court interview with Tennis TV, Sinner said: “We know each other quite well. We practised a lot in the last tournaments, also. So we both kind of knew what to expect.
“I felt like I was serving quite well today in the important moments. And this surface — it’s very, very different from all the other surfaces, so it’s very tough to get the right feedback.
“And sometimes, you feel like you’re not playing your best tennis, but from outside it seems like you are. And sometimes, it’s also the opposite.
“But I’m very happy to be in the quarters here again. It’s a tournament I haven’t played a lot, so it means a lot to me, and happy to be through in two sets.”
Asked about the unusual challenge of starting a match at 11am, Sinner questioned the tournament schedule.
“Yeah, quite unusual for me. I don’t know when was the last time I played at 11,” said the four-time Grand Slam champion.
“But for me, doesn’t matter what time, I try to do my best. There was a question if me or [Rafael] Jodar plays at 4, but I think it’s right he plays at 4; he finished very, very late [in his previous match].
“But at the same time, I feel like we need to make some adjustments with the scheduling of the day. Two matches from 8 [pm] is very late, even though you have one day in between.
“But still, it’s very, very late; you finish at 1:30, and you need to eat, you need to have treatment, so it’s very late. But we try to adapt ourselves, our bodies and minds.
“From my side, it was a good performance today.”
Sinner will face either Rafael Jodar or Vit Kopriva in the quarter-finals.
