World No.2 Rafael Nadal has powered into the third round of Australian Open 2010, recording a straight sets win over luckless Slovak Lukas Lacko at Rod Laver Arena on Wednesday.
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Nadal was at his irrepressible best, barely giving his opponent a chance during the 113-minute tennis lesson, winning 6-2 6-2 6-2.
The Spaniard started strongly, breaking Lacko in the opening game as he moved the world No.75 from side to side.
Lacko toiled hard, but he was unable to absorb Nadal’s power game as the second-seeded Majorcan blasted winners almost at will. It wasn’t until the sixth game that Lacko got on the board, but by then Nadal’s confidence was higher than the Rod Laver Arena roof.
Nadal closed out the set 6-2, leaving Lacko wondering what he could do to get himself back into the contest.
The first thing he may have considered was increasing his first serve percentage, which was a paltry 29 per cent for the opening set. Nadal was being treated to too many second serves and was feasting on them.
The second set started in much the same way the first set, with Nadal breaking Lacko in the opening game after the Slovak hit a forehand wide.
Unfortunately for Lacko, things didn’t get much better as the second set kept a similar meter and rhyme to the first set – Nadal 6-2.
There were no prizes for guessing how the third, and ultimately final, set began - with a Nadal break.
By this stage, Nadal was ripping his forehand and bullying his less-credentialed opponent around the court. Lacko tried hard and chased most balls down, but Nadal’s power and ability to find the corners left the Slovak swinging but not getting anywhere near the ball.
Nadal showed no mercy as he went for the throat, punishing Lacko with winners and giving the Rod Laver Arena debutant a close-up look at what it takes to win a major.
Just as he did in the previous two sets, Nadal captured the third set 6-2, sending a warning to his rivals as he strode confidently into the third round, where he will face 27th-seeded German Philipp Kohlschreiber.
Following the match, Nadal was happy with his second-round performance.
“I think I did well, no? I was playing, moving well in the beginning without mistakes, having with the control of the ball.
“No, I think I played right way. Very good match, yeah.”
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