Nadal, Murray advance to Barca Open quarter-finals
Send a link to a friend
[April 28, 2017]
By Joseph Casinelli
BARCELONA, (Reuters) - Third seed
Rafael Nadal remained on course for a 10th Barcelona Open title
after reaching the quarter-finals with a 6-3 6-4 victory over Kevin
Anderson on Thursday.
World number one Andy Murray also advanced as he stepped up his
recovery from an elbow injury by breezing past Spaniard Feliciano
Lopez 6-4 6-4.
It was Nadal’s 50th victory at the tournament and the Mallorcan
never looked in danger against world number 66 Anderson, forcing 10
break points in the match.
Nadal, who broke the big-serving South African twice, said the rain
throughout the morning in Catalonia meant the newly-renamed Rafa
Nadal Court was moving slower than usual.
He will be hoping for better weather when he takes on South Korean
qualifier Hyeon Chung in the last eight on Friday.
“They weren’t the best conditions for me. I much prefer it when the
ball is doing more,” Nadal said.
“It wasn’t easy. He’s a really tall player who hits the ball well in
comfortable positions. I tried to make him take the ball on the move
in order to make him less comfy.”
Top seed Murray's victory set up a meeting with Albert
Ramos-Vinolas, the Spaniard who knocked him out of the Monte Carlo
Masters last week, on Friday.
[to top of second column] |
Rafael Nadal of Spain stands near a Spanish flag before his final
against his compatriot Albert Ramos-Vinolas at the Monte Carlo
Masters. REUTERS/Eric Gaillard
The 29-year-old is the last Briton in the draw after the country's
number two Dan Evans lost 7-6(5) 6-2 to Austria’s Dominic Thiem, who
faces Yuichi Sugita for a semi-final place.
(Editing by Ken Ferris) [© 2017 Thomson Reuters. All
rights reserved.]
Copyright 2017 Reuters. All rights
reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten
or redistributed.
|