Rafa Nadal set up a rematch with Australian Open opponent Daniil Medvedev in Acapulco with a straight sets 6-0, 7-6(5) win over American Tommy Paul on Thursday.
Nadal dropped just 10 points in the opening set but came up against some resistance in the second as both players battled in the hot and humid conditions.
“I think I played one of the best sets since a long time ago,” Nadal said of the opening set.
“I played fantastic in the first set. In the beginning of the second I made a couple of mistakes, and then he started playing better and better. The set became a little bit crazy with a lot of breaks.”
The second set was a lot different as Paul took a 2-1 lead and then jumped to 4-3 after a rally that saw both players fire off some amazing shots.
Nadal then broke for the sixth time in the match to stop his opponent from serving out the set, saving two break points to edge ahead at 6-5 before Paul then saved two break points.
Nadal was down 0-2 in. the tie-break before winning four straight points to see out the set and the match.
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