Playing on Pista Rafa Nadal, nine-time champion Rafael Nadal has booked his place in round three of the Barcelona Open thanks to a straight-sets win over Rogerio Dutra Silva.
Despite having a slow start to the second set against the 69th-ranked Brazilian, Rafa recovered by winning the final six games to secure the victory. He won 6-1, 6-2 in 75 minutes and it was his 2nd win over 69th-ranked Brazilian (he extended his perfect 10-0 record of never having lost to Brazilian players). It was his 49th victory in Barcelona.
Our champ will now meet Kevin Anderson for a spot in the quarter-finals.
Rafa:
I want to thank everyone who makes this tournament possible, a historic tournament and one of the best of the year. It makes me enormously proud that this court bears my name. It’s a huge honour and hugely satisfying.
The court was a bit slower than usual because of the rain, but I’m happy, the (tournament) debut is always delicate. Tomorrow I will have to take another step forward against an opponent like Anderson. I’m happy to be in the third round. (via Reuters)
Robertoluciani Natal w sagna💔💋💘💜❤💞💟💗💖
Rafa, it seems clay is increasingly rejuvenating you. Those gorgeous legs of yours seem to have recaptured some of that extra spark, that only you are known for, when chasing that point you know is yours. It’s wonderful seeing you in such great form.
ROCK ON RAFA
https://polldaddy.com/js/rating/rating.js
Rafa the heartiest of congratulations for GREAT play.
Love and prayers for next game,
Love,
AlaineXXSydneyXXAustraliaXX
https://polldaddy.com/js/rating/rating.js
Congratulations Rafa 🤗 Love that amazing smile of yours – you’re sparkeling 💖😁
Fabulous match. Watching rafa play today it was clear he is oozing confidence. It’s the best I’ve seen him play for a while. The score line does not demonstrate how good the match actually was! Well done rafa
Yes Susie , a great first match ,all he needed was to win one final and pick up a title ( and he couldn’t have picked a better one than the MC to achieve this) to make his confidence come flooding back especially after losing to Roger. I loved seeing him on the court afterwards picking up his plaque for Pista Rafa Nadal his face was just beaming .😀
Yes Maria – rafa is looking really good. I think the biggest hurdle this week will be andy. Let’s hope rafa really builds on his confidence so by the time they meet (if they meet) rafa can deal with him. Mind you I hear Sasha is looking for retribution and may well be ready for rafa too. But we shall see.
Good job today. Vamos Rafa.
I’m happy that Rafa played more freely today. 😊
Well that understandably lead to more UEs, 23W/19UE compared to Silva’s 6W/18UE IIRC, but who cares? He hasn’t been playing *that* freely for quite a while and lots of those winners are just stunning!
Just you wait for the highlights. There aren’t many things in life I’m more sure about than Rafa will definitely look *really* great in them, which is only fitting considering it was his “welcome match” on the court that bears his name.
Still haven’t got enough of those “PISTA Rafa Nadal”s coming from the commies over the last three days. The way they always stressed when pronoucing it. ☺️😊
Congrats, Rafa, for the good win. From your look when the match ended you seemed not too happy about it, probably because of those UEs. But still you played beautifully and freely and *that* is the best sign (apart from your good health) you fans could hope for. 🇪🇸🇪🇸🇪🇸🇪🇸
https://polldaddy.com/js/rating/rating.js
High quality of tennis, Rafa! Gongrats!
https://polldaddy.com/js/rating/rating.js
Yes! Clearly Rafa is on a mission to achieve his second decima. He had his game face on firmly. What a different Rafa we are seeing compared to the last two years! He went for his shots with confidence and total commitment. Even though he missed a few, he never eased off and never went into his shell. As Mark Petchy said, “confidence brings power …” and that was evident. Credit to Dutra Silva as the score line didn’t reflect the quality of the match. He never gave up and contributed welll to a very entertaining contest. Well done Rafa on your first win on Pista Rafa Nadal. We want to see more of this type of fearless tennis from you throughout the year, regardless of your opponent! Onwards and upwards!! 👍😘🤗
https://polldaddy.com/js/rating/rating.js
Very well put, Lorna. 👌👌
Great comments! Totally agree with several posts. I was happiest about his air of confidence. He just seems to be on a mission!
Great opening match, Rafa. Keep marching forward to your 10th Barcelona title. I want to see that great smile of yours again, and again.
RAFA ROCKS
Congratulations Rafa my boy. Vamos Rafa. God bless you. Your Aussie Abuela Nan Shirley. 🐂⏳👑😀😊😇
Sigues Adelante hiciste fantastico hoy contra Silva. Vaaamos Rafa tengo mucha fe en ti.
FELICITACIONES, RAFA!!!! ESPERO VERTE GANANDO LA COPA EN BARCELONA!!!! VAMOS, CAMPEON!!!!!