French Open: Top favourite Rafael Nadal effortlessly in round three

Record champion Rafael Nadal has reached the third round of the French Open without any problems and remains on course for his Roland Garros title mission number eleven.

The Spanish world number one effortlessly won his second match against Argentinian Guido Pella 6-2, 6-1, 6-1 and 6-1 on Thursday, thus clinching his second three-set victory in the tournament. Nadal’s next opponent is French local hero Richard Gasquet (No. 27).

Unlike his 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 (11-9) first-round win over Simone Bolelli of Italy, Nadal never got into trouble against the world ranking-78th Pella. After 2:03 hours, Pella’s fourth double mistake ended the match. Last year, 16-time Grand Slam winner Nadal stormed to “La Decima”, his tenth title in Roland Garros without losing a set.