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Rafael Nadal continued his terrific form on the clay at the Madrid Open as he battled past Pedro Cachin 6-1, 6-7(5), 6-3 to reach the fourth round on Monday.
In front of an enthusiastic home crowd at Manolo Santana Stadium, the Spaniard--a record five-time champion in Madrid--showed glimpses of his vintage best against Cachin, at times sprinting around his backhand to dictate with his inside-out forehand. Cachin, who won his sole tour-level championship on clay in Gstaad last year, put a lot of pressure on the 37-year-old, but the lefty delivered a monster third set. Nadal appeared physically powerful and used extra whip and force off the forehand wing in the final after surrendering the second set. This helped him secure a hard-fought victory after three hours and four minutes of play. "Some moments were good, some moments not good, but I found a way to go through. In the third set, even with some mistakes, I was able to be a little more unpredictable and that probably changed the match," Nadal said as quoted by ATP. "I am enjoying. Let's see how I wake up tomorrow. I don't know. Day by day I am enjoying playing at home, it means everything to me. I am trying my best to keep dreaming. Tomorrow is another day to keep dreaming. To keep playing in front of this amazing crowd and to me that means everything," Nadal said on his fitness. In the second set, the Spaniard came back from a double break deficit and a 3-5 deficit to tie the score at 5-5 after saving two set chances on Cachin's serve. After that, both players were broken, and Cachin finally won the set with a winning backhand return on his third set point. But since last July, the 29-year-old has only won two matches at the tour level. In the championship match, he found it difficult to stay at his current level while Nadal raised his. Throughout the third set, the 36-time Masters 1000 champion reduced the number of mistakes he made and showed off his physical prowess by persistently tracking down balls during the third hour of play. In the final moments of the third set, Nadal dominated Cachin with his blazing forehand and erupted in celebration after his sixth tour-level win of the season. Nadal will strive to reach his 10th successive quarter-final in the Spanish capital when he takes on Jiri Lehecka. (ANI)
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