Nadal earns 200th major win
May 26, 2016
Rafael Nadal picked up his 200th Grand Slam match victory and a spot in the next round of the French open on Thursday with a comprehensive win over Facunda Bagnis.
The Spaniard initially fell behind 2-0 before taking 14 of the next 15 games, winning 6-3, 6-0 and 6-2 in the second round clash.
The win now puts Nadal on 200 wins from 230 major games, putting him on a win percentage of 87 percent. A ratio bested by just seven other men in Grand Slam tournament history.
"I think this year I played better than last year," said Nadal. "I've been able to play some really good matches against the best players in the world. I'm very happy to be competitive again."
Djokovic beats Darcis to continue pursuit of missing trophy
Meanwhile Nadal’s main rival for the Roland Garros trophy, Novak Djokovic, picked up his 50th French Open win, beating Steve Darcis 7-5 6-3 6-4.
Despite dropping his service twice against the Belgian, the world No. 1 ultimately made short work of his opponent on Court Yuzanne Lenglen to reach the next round of the competition.
"It was a bit difficult but I'm happy I won in three sets," said Djokovic, who will be hoping to go one step further than the runner-up medal he picked up at last year’s competition. With the French Open standing alone as the only Grant Slam award he has yet to win in his illustrious career.
Williams chases Graf's record with easy win
In the women’s game, defending champion Serena Williams breezed past Teliana Pereira 6-2, 6-1 in the second round of the French Open.
Despite losing five games in two matches, the American No. 1 will next face French Kristina Mladenovic or Hungarian Timea Babos at Roland Garros.
Williams needed just 66 minutes to beat her 81st-ranked opponent, with a 31-6 dominance in winners throughout the match.
Should Williams win the competition she would equal Steffi Graf’s Open-era record of 22 Grand Slams.
Sb/ (AP, AFP)