 Nadal was fresh from his winning the Monte Carlo Masters title |
Rafael Nadal extended his unbeaten run on clay to 43 matches with a 6-4 6-2 win over Feliciano Lopez in the second round of the Barcelona Open. The defending champion broke twice in each set against his fellow Spaniard to set up a clash with another compatriot - qualifier Ivan Navarro-Pastor.
His winning sequence is now just three behind second-placed Bjorn Borg on the all-time list.
Albert Costa postponed his retirement by beating Dominik Hrbaty 6-3 7-5.
Costa will quit tennis when he is knocked out of the event.
Nadal said: "I know from experience that the first two rounds are very difficult.
"I know that if I can win the first two rounds then it gets a bit easier after that."
Fellow Spaniards Juan Carlos Ferrero, Tommy Robredo, Ivan Navarro Pastor and Alberto Portas also won their second-round matches.
Second seed Nikolay Davydenko lost 6-7 (7-9) 7-5 6-4 to giant Croatian Ivo Karlovic, who pounded down 19 aces.
MMIX
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