ATP: Nadal survives the shakes in Beijing

Rafael Nadal has reached the round of sixteen at the ATP World Tour 500 tournament in Beijing.The Spaniard had to fight off two match points in his three-match win over Lucas Pouille.

The autumn curse almost struck again.Rafael Nadal has barely escaped a first round defeat in the Chinese capital.The world number one in the tiebreak of the second set had to fight off two match points, but Nadal won after 2:30 hours 4:6,7:6 (6) and 7:5 against Lucas Pouille.

The Frenchman was the dominant player for most of the match, but the 23rd player in the world had to serve 5:6.Pouille had defeated the Spaniard at the US Open 2016 in a thrilling five-part thriller, but this time he was lacking the necessary fortune.

In the round of 16, the 31-year-old industry leader will be faced with either Karen Khachanov (Russia) or local hero and wildcard holder Di Wu.