ATP: 48! Rafael Nadal continues to set a new record in Madrid

Rafael Nadal won his opening match at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Madrid. With a 6:3, 6:1 victory against Gael Monfils, the five-time tournament winner entered the round of 16.

Nadal sets his sights on the magical 50’s mark: If the 31-year-old Spaniard also holds himself harmless in his round of 16 match against Feliciano Lopez or Diego Schwartzman, it would have been 50 sets in a row that Nadal would have won on his favourite surface.

Against Monfils, “Rafa” only had slight start-up problems in the first run. Although the world number one secured the break in the Frenchman’s first service game, Nadal had to sweat more than he could like. Monfils initially held up well, but the world’s number 41 missed two chances for a re-break.

In the second set, the defending champion moved away safely: After three more breaks Nadal turned his third match point to the 20th win in a row after 1:15 hour.