French Open tennis - Rafael Nadal 'frightening' in victory over Richard Gasquet at Roland Garros
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Updated 03/06/2021 at 22:18 GMT
The King of Clay at Roland Garros, Rafael Nadal, was in stunning form as he swatted aside his old friend Richard Gasquet, 6-0 7-5 6-2, in the second round of the 2021 French Open in a performance which was described as "frightening" in the Eurosport commentary box. The number three seed faced the Frenchman in an empty Philippe Chatrier in the evening session.
Highlights: Nadal overpowers Gasquet to progress on his birthday
Birthday boy Rafael Nadal marked his special day with a comfortable straight sets victory over Richard Gasquet at the French Open.
The 13-time champion at Roland Garros blew the Frenchman away with a quite breathtaking opening set bagel and he was in total control after taking the second 7-5.
Gasquet did respond well to the bagel with that second set but he was not able to keep up the resistance in the third as Nadal closed out the win in comfortable fashion.
"I played an incredible first set," Nadal said in his post-match on-court interview.
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'No! No! Don't celebrate!' - Nadal jokes about birthday after win
"Richard did not play at all badly in the first set but I did not miss.
"I was happy to win the second set 7-5 and then after that I was a bit more comfortable I think."
The third seed will now await the challenge of Britain's Cam Norrie, who earlier in the day beat Lloyd Harris of South Africa in their second-round match.
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Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer have all found themselves in the same part of the men's draw in what is an intriguing prospect.
The draw looks particularly exciting for Stefanos Tsitsipas, Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev with the trio not having to face any of the 'Big Three' until the final at least.
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Djokovic could take on Nadal in the semi-finals in Paris in what would be a repeat from last year's final in the postponed autumnal edition.
The three most successful players in the history of the men's game have won 17 of the last 20 Grand Slam titles between them.
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'It means an awful lot to me' - Nadal meets his statue at Roland Garros
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Watch all the action from the 2021 French Open live on Eurosport, eurosport.co.uk and the Eurosport app with 13-time champion Rafael Nadal eyeing a remarkable 14th title and 2020 Roland Garros sensation Iga Swiatek aiming to replicate her stunning triumph.
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