Fresh after winning for the eleventh time in Monte Carlo and the Conde de Godó, Spanish Rafael Nadal began his conquest for the sixth time at the Mutua Madrid Open with a victory over French Gael Monfils 6-3 and 6-1 in 73 minutes.
In his first match in Madrid this year, Nadal left good sensations to overcome Monfils, like himself at 31 years old, and advance to the quarterfinals where he will face the winner of the match between Argentine Diego Schwartzman and Spaniard Feliciano López.
Nadal has already won 20 consecutive matches on clay and has 48 sets in his pocket, without losing a single one.
Monfils had admitted that if the match became long, it would fall on Nadal's side, due to some discomfort in the Achilles tendon. But he did not expect Nadal's exhibition, to whom he ended up bowing, overwhelmed by his power.
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The French Gael Monfils finished his initial match at the Mutua Madrid Open against the Georgian Nikoloz Basilashvili (6-2, 3-6 and 6-3) close to midnight, and will be today (9:00 a.m. LIVE on ESPN) the first rival of the Spanish Rafael Nadal, and although he knows what it is like to defeat the world number one, he does not trust his physical condition after suffering a slight twist in his Achilles tendon.
"I think I twisted it a bit, but we'll see," said the Frenchman who expects that if the match is long, he will not have many options against the Spanish, who comes in shape after winning in Monte Carlo and the Conde de Godó.
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Rafael Nadal won Conde de Godó! Defeated Tsitsipas and was crowned for the eleventh time.
"He is one of the good ones. It is always hard to play against Rafa on clay. Especially this year, he has not lost a set on this surface, so Wednesday will be a challenge. I am not in my best shape, and it is a shame. I would have liked a great match," he said.
"When you step on the court, you always believe that you can win, that is the beauty of sport. Even if it is a tough match. Of course, I will try to be aggressive against Rafa Nadal, but it is not easy to be against him," he continued.
"My goal is to be above him, but that never happens," said the Frenchman, who has never been able to defeat the Spanish on clay, and who added his two only victories against the Manacor native in Doha, on hard court, in 2009 and 2012.
"It will be a battle from the baseline and I will be able to win some games, but if the match becomes long, he will win very easily," Monfils ventured to remember that Nadal has won the last 46 sets he has played on clay. "He is a legend, and on Wednesday I will try to surpass him and break his record. That is good motivation."