By Richard Pagliaro | Wednesday, April 17, 2019
Rafael Nadal launched his Monte-Carlo defense dismissing Roberto Bautista Agut, 6-1, 6-1, extending his MC winning streak to 16 matches.
Photo credit: @RolexMCMasters
Absence makes the heart grow fonder—and intensifies Rafael Nadal’s attention to detail.
The 11-time Monte-Carlo champion turned his clay-court return into clean-up time.
Watch: 5 Mind-Blowing Clay-Court Achievements
Covering the salmon-colored surface as comfortably as a man dashing around his own backyard, Nadal charged through eight of the first nine games dusting Roberto Bautista Agut, 6-1, 6-1, to roll into the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters round of 16 for the 16th time.
It is Nadal’s 16th straight Monte-Carlo triumph—a streak that stretches back to his semifinal setback to Novak Djokovic in 2015.
"I had great feelings," Nadal said in his on-court interview afterward. "Always this court is so, so special for me. I'm enjoying the fact that I have one more time the chance to be playing here in this amazing club."
Nadal will face Grigor Dimitrov for a quarterfinal spot. Dimitrov defeated Jan-Lennard Struff, 7-6 (2), 6-4. Nadal has won 11 of 12 meetings vs. the Bulgarian.
The reigning Roland Garros champion erased all five break points he faced in a 76-minute rout.
Sixteen years after his debut in the Principality, Nadal showed some vintage clay-court form improving to 69-4.
The clash between Spain’s top two players showed they are world’s apart on this surface.
The 22nd-ranked Bautista Agut has two hard-court wins over world No. 1 Djokovic this season, but the flat-hitting Spaniard managed just two games as Nadal constantly probed the corners of the court with twisting topspin drives. Nadal has permitted just 14 games in three career-clay court wins over Bautista Agut.
In his first clay-court match since defeating Dominic Thiem in the 2018 Roland Garros final, Nadal did not show signs of the right knee injury that forced him to withdraw from his scheduled Indian Wells semifinal vs. Roger Federer and knocked him out of the Miami Open.
"It was (my) first match on clay after almost a year so I just tried to play solid, tried to play dominant with my forehand when I had the chance and then I did a couple of times volleys and that's good news," Nadal said.
Wearing a light-blue Nike shirt and white shorts without a trace of taping near his cranky knees, the reigning champion moved fluidly and struck forcefully from the outset.
A ruthless Nadal permitted just six points in rolling to a 5-0 lead in 21 minutes. Bautista Agut finally stopped his scoreless skid with a love hold in the sixth game.
The world No. 2 came back from 15-30 down rocketing a forehand down the line for set point. When Bautista Agut’s flat forehand sailed, Nadal had the 33-minute opener in imposing fashion.
Wrapping a heavy topspin forehand drive around net post that dive-bombed into the corner of the court helped Nadal open the second set banging out a third break.
Even incremental gains didn’t come easy. Bautista Agut hit a finishing forehand crosscourt for his first winner 10 games into the match. That shot helped him hold for 1-2—by then Nadal held an 11 to 1 edge in winners.
To his credit, Bautista Agut kept battling earning triple break-point 54 minutes into the match. In a spirited run, Nadal denied all three break points.
Even when Bautista Agut finally had Nadal where he wanted him—at net and vulnerable to a pass—Nadal anticipated correctly jabbing a forehand volley to hold for 3-1.
That comeback break dispirited Bautista Agut, who dropped serve in the following game.
Completing a masterful comeback with an angled forehand volley, Nadal launched his Monte-Carlo defense in style raising his career clay-court record to a mind-blowing 416-36.
Thiem won 20 of 23 first-serve points sweeping Martin Klizan, 6-1, 6-4. It was Thiem's first win in three clay-court matches vs. the tricky left-handed Slovak.
A year ago, Thiem defeated Djokovic en route to the Monte-Carlo quarterfinals before bowing to Nadal in a prelude to their French Open final.
It was a day of upsets.
Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert saved all 10 break points he faced surprising 2018 finalist Kei Nishikori, 7-5, 6-4, in one hour, 42 minutes. Herbert will face ninth-seeded Borna Coric next.
Taylor Fritz converted six of 17 break points downing Diego Schwartzman, 6-4, 6-2.
The 21-year-old American earned a date with top-seeded Djokovic next.
No. 3-seeded Alexander Zverev converted six of seven break points conquering Canadian wild card Felix Auger-Aliassime, 6-1, 6-4. Zverev meets 13th-seeded Fabio Fognini next.