Raonic Retires After 1st Set, Verdasco Advances To Meet Del Potro

Fernando Verdasco wanted revenge.  He didn’t think it would come quite so soon.

After bursting on the tennis scene with his journey into the 4th round at the Australian Open in January, young Canadian Milos Raonic announced to the world he was here to stay two weeks later when he ousted then No. 9 Fernando Verdasco twice in three days--first in the final in San Jose and then in the 1st round of the tournament in Memphis.

The two met again Saturday in the semifinals of the Estoril Open in Portugal, and Verdasco came away victorious after Raonic retired at the end of the first set.  Verdasco, now ranked No. 15 won the set 6-4, converting on one of just two break point opportunities for either player in the decisive 10th game.  Raonic saved the first set point with one of his 6 aces.

Neither player had made any serious threat to the other’s serve until the final game, and  the tall Canadian, now up to a career-high ranking of No. 27, did not seem to be laboring or favoring an injury.  After a net-cord sent his final forehand beyond the baseline, Raonic walked to the net and told Verdasco he would play no longer. 

Apparently, Raonic, who had to complete his quarterfinal match this morning after it was suspended for rain and ultimately darkness yesterday, was not feeling well and did not want to put his health in jeopardy with three big tournaments looming.  He will play two Masters 1000 events the next two weeks in Madrid and Rome respectively, and then the French Open, the second Grand Slam of the year, gets underway the third week of May.

Verdasco will meet Argentine and former top 5 player Juan Martin Del Potro in the final on Sunday.  Del Potro beat surprise semifinalist Pablo Cuevas earlier this morning to advance to the final.  Del Potro is on the comeback trail after having missed almost all of last year with an injured wrist.  He beat Roger Federer in an exciting five set final at the 2009 US Open for his first Grand Slam title.  Del Potro is looking in top form in his quest to regain a spot in the top ten.

Rain Halts Soderling-Del Potro Rematch

Rain washed out the much anticipated quarterfinal match Friday between Robin Soderling and Juan Martin Del Potro at the Estoril Open in Portugal.  Del Potro won the first set and was trailing in the second set when play was suspended.

The first set was decided on Del Potro’s superiority on the key points.  The Argentine, on the comeback trail after missing almost all of last year with a wrist injury, capitalized on his second break point opportunity in the fifth game of the match.

Soderling had his chances, but was unable to convert any of his four chances to break Del Potro, including two in the fourth game of the match and two more in the sixth game.  In the pivotal eighth game of the set, Del Potro went down 0-30 and came back to win four consecutive points to secure a 5-3 lead and take control of the set.

Soderling broke through to finally break Del Potro after holding serve to start the second set.  The Swede crushed an inside-out forehand that the tall Argentine returned beyond the baseline to jump out to an early 2-0 lead.

The match was played under ominously dark skies, and the rain finally began to fall with Soderling leading 4-1 and Del Potro serving at 15-30.  Play was delayed briefly at 15-15 when the spectators rushed for cover from the rain; Del Potro, irritated by the distraction and two previous calls he felt went against him, double faulted and the players were called back to the locker room.

Soderling is trying to win back-to-back matches at a tournament for the first time since winning the title at Marseille in mid-February.  He lost to Del Potro in the second round at the Sony Ericsson Masters 1000 in Miami at the end of March.  Del Potro dominated that match, played on a hard court, in straight sets without facing a break point.

The winner of this match will face Uruguayan Pablo Cuevas in the semifinals.  Cuevas backed up his win over No. 3 seed Jo-Wilfred Tsonga in the second round by beating No. 6 seed Tomaz Bellucci earlier Friday in the quarterfinals before the rain washed out play.

Nadal Bags Record 6th Barcelona Title

Another day, another milestone for world No. 1 Rafael Nadal.

Yesterday Nadal won his 500th career match to advance to the finals at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell.  Today, lifting the trophy on Pista Principal, he becomes the first player in the Open Era to win two different tournaments at least six times.

Nadal beat fellow Spaniard David Ferrer 6-2 6-4, his third victory in as many tries against Ferrer in a Barcelona final.  He also defeated his friend and Davis Cup teammate in the 2008 and 2009 finals.  Nadal blew through the field this week without losing a set, and has dropped only one set on clay this year.

The powerful lefty jumped on Ferrer early, after saving break point at 0-1, racing out to a 4-1 lead before the sellout crowd could get settled in their seats.  Each time Ferrer gave his opponent the slightest opening, Nadal would pounce--crushing forehands up the line on two key break points.  In just 39 minutes, the first set was over and another lopsided Nadal victory looked imminent.

Both players struggled to hold serve in the second set--a total of five breaks were recorded in the set.  Ferrer saved 9 break points in the second set alone, and definitely had his chances to send the match to a deciding third set.

After holding serve in a marathon service game at 2-2, Ferrer broke Nadal and extended his lead to 4-2.  Ferrer, ranked No. 6 in the world, was playing with confidence, dictating points and moving Nadal around the court with a variety of shots.  He looked to be in the driver’s seat.  The match appeared to be going the distance.

Displaying the grit of a true champion, though, Nadal came right back and jumped on Ferrer’s serve, leading 0-40.  Ferrer fended off three break points, and drew even at deuce with a gorgeous drop half-volley that elicited oohs and ahhs from the crowd and a look of admiration from Nadal.  Ferrer was just two points from a 5-2 lead, but against Nadal on his favorite surface, two consecutive points in a pressure-packed environment can be impossibly elusive.  He broke back, and just as quickly as Ferrer gained momentum in the match, Nadal snatched it back.

Ferrer seemed unhampered by his left knee, which he injured in his quarterfinal match against Jurgen Melzer, until late in the second set.  After another marathon game drew Nadal even at 4-4, Ferrer seemed to have a little problem moving freely, and limped back to his chair, all but defeated, after being broken in the 9th game of the set.

Nadal will take the week off before resuming his defense of last year’s clay court sweep--the next month will be crucial to his continued reign as the No. 1 player in the world.  He needs to defend title points at Masters 1000 events in Madrid and Rome, and the French Open championship.  At this point, however, it’s probably not wise to bet against the King of Clay.

Nadal & Ferrer To Face Off In Barcelona Final

Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer will square off in an encore of last week’s Monte Carlo final tomorrow in Barcelona after both Spaniards won their semifinal matches Sautrday in straight sets.

Nadal beat surprise semifinalist Ivan Dodig, a Croat ranked #56 in the world, 6-3 6-2, after starting the match by winning the first 8 points.  Dodig settled down and was able to hang with the world’s top-ranked player, getting the break of service back to even things up at 3-3.  Then Nadal did what Nadal does--he raised the level of his game and ran off the next six games, taking the first set and going up a break in the second.

Dodig, though, refused to give in and played some outstanding points throughout the second set, but couldn’t hold serve consistently enough to seriously challenge Nadal.  Dodig took more games off the Spaniard than any other player this week, and certainly earned the respect of the Spanish crowd with his gritty effort and determination.  In the end, however, Nadal was too tough an opponent.  The victory was number 500 in the already stellar career for the King of Clay.  It’s safe to say a lot more will follow.  Nadal will go for 501 against fellow Spaniard Ferrer in the final Sunday for the second consecutive week.

Ferrer was able to get past another Spaniard, Nicolas Almagro, in the first semifinal of the day on Pista Principal at the Real Club de Tenis, 6-3 6-4.

At times, Almagro, who will enter the top 10 for the first time Monday, was playing against both Ferrer and his own mental demons.  He chided himself throughout the match, especially after crucial points which he was not able to convert.  Almagro was competitive in most games, and had chances to break, but Ferrer was too tough on the key points.  Alamgro slammed his racket to the red clay when Ferrer took a commanding 4-2 lead in the first set after a string of Almagro unforced errors.

At 2-2 in the second set, Almagro played some inspired points to save two break points and bring the game to deuce, but Almagro once again played a loose point, and Ferrer was able to break with a beautiful inside out backhand return of serve winner.

Almagro was able to save three match points before Ferrer, who like Nadal has yet to drop a set this week, was able to close out the match and punch his ticket to his third final in the last four years at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell.

The Nadal-Ferrer final will guarantee that a Spaniard will remain champion of the tournament.  The last time a non-Spaniard won the event was way back in 2003, when Argentine Gaston Gaudio hoisted the trophy.  Ferrer is looking for his first title in Barcelona; Nadal is gunning for his sixth.

Dodig Crashes Spanish Party; Nadal, Ferrer & Almagro Advance

Ivan Dodig continued his impressive run of results at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, ousting Feliciano Lopez in three sets to advance to the semifinals.  Dodig, from Croatia, is the last man standing at the tournament who isn’t from Spain.

Dodig will meet Rafael Nadal in the semifinals after his third consecutive quality win in this ATP World Tour 500 tournament.  He beat #3 seed Robin Soderling and #15 seed Milos Raonic in the second and third rounds respectively.  The Croat continued his confident and inspired play by jumping on Lopez with an early break and holding his own serve easily throughout the opening set, which he won 6-4.  His level of play dipped a bit in the second set as Lopez raced out to a 3-0 lead and took the set comfortably, 6-2.  For the second day in a row, however, Dodig answered the call in a tight third set.  Both players were taking care of their own serves until Dodig, who upped his record to 15-7 in 2011, came through with the key break of serve in the 9th game to take a 5-4 advantage, and secured the opportunity to serve for his first-ever berth into an ATP 500 semifinal.  A highly partisan Spanish crowd, hoping for an all-Spanish final four, was no deterrent for Dodig, who comfortably finished the match with a fist pump to set up his date with the world’s top-ranked player on Saturday.

Earlier on an overcast and at times rainy afternoon on the clay courts of the Real Club de Tenis, Nadal and fellow Spaniards David Ferrer and Nicolas Almagro won their quarterfinal matches in straight sets.  Nadal made Frenchman Gael Monfils, a dangerous player with a top 10 pedigree, look like a weekend hacker with a lethal combination of blistering groundstrokes and clever angles.  Nadal’s stellar play reduced Monfils to chuckles on several occasions, looking skyward for answers that didn’t exist.  Nadal was first on court Friday afternoon, and wrapped up his match before the rains arrived and delayed play for more than an hour.

When the rain stopped, Ferrer took the court to face Austrian Jurgen Melzer for the second time in as many weeks.  Ferrer beat Melzer last week in the semifinals at Monte Carlo, and the Austrian was again no match for Ferrer’s consistency, though at times Melzer appeared to be his own worst enemy.  

On serve at 1-1 in the first set and Melzer leading 15-30, he hit a backhand that clipped the line and skidded over the racket of Ferrer.  The ball was called out and then immediately corrected by the linesman, but the umpire, much to Melzer’s disappointment, ruled the point to be replayed.  Melzer argued with the umpire throughout the next two games, which only served to alienate and vocalize an already pro-Ferrer crowd.  Instead of 15-40 and two break points to take an early advantage in the opening set, Ferrer held serve and responded by breaking Melzer and cruising to a 4-1 lead.

There was, however, a scary moment for Ferrer and his fans when he tweaked his left knee rushing the net to play a short ball at the beginning of the second set.  The trainer was on court for a full medical timeout with Ferrer trailing 1-2.  The Spaniard returned with his knee taped up, and seemed to suffer no obvious negative effects for the duration of the match, though Melzer tried unsuccessfully to take advantage of the injury by moving Ferrer from side to side and up and back on the court.

Ferrer found himself in a spot of trouble at 3-3, down break point, but he came up with a beautiful lunging backhand drop volley to save the point and, eventually, the game.  That was the last whimper from Melzer, who didn’t win another game as Ferrer served out the match for a 6-3 6-3 victory and a date in the semifinals.

Almagro, who secured a spot in the top 10 for the first time with his 3rd round win over Nikolay Davydenko, cruised into the semifinals with a straight set triumph over yet another Spaniard, Juan Carlos Ferrero.  Ferrero, the former #1 player in the world, playing in his first tournament since last year’s US Open, seemed to be fatigued as the match progressed.  Almagro, though himself a bit inconsistent on serve at times, continued his solid play on clay in 2011.  Almagro won two events earlier this year in South America and was a finalist in Acapulco, where he lost to Ferrer in three sets.  Those two will square off in a rematch of the Acapulco final Saturday with a berth in the final on the line.

Nadal Beats Monfils, Rain Into Barcelona Semis

Rafael Nadal served notice to the tennis world that it will take a monumental effort to beat him on the red clay courts of Europe this spring.

Nadal saved his best tennis of the week for #7 seed Gael Monfils, dismantling the Frenchman in straight sets, 6-2 6-2 at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell.  The world’s #1 ranked player never faced a break point, dominating the middle portion of each set.  Monfils simply could not keep up with the blistering pace and spin of Nadal’s forehand, which seems to only be getting better as the clay court season goes on.

The two sets were mirror images of each other.  Monfils opened the match with a service hold before losing five straight games.  He held a 40-love lead at 1-1 when he netted a relatively easy forehand down the line.  Nadal came all the way back to break, and raced to a 5-1 lead before Monfils could hold again to make the scoreboard look a little more respectable.

The second set unfolded in the same manner--the Frenchman opened by holding serve and then lost five consecutive games.  He held one more time at 5-1 before Nadal served out the match on an overcast afternoon in Barcelona in just under an hour and a quarter.  On the first point of the second set, Monfils went high to play a backhand smash and tumbles awkwardly to the court.  He slightly favored his left ankle during the remainder of the match, but never called for the trainer.

Not only did Nadal beat Monfils for the 8th time in 9 matches, he caught a break fromMother nature and the schedule makers.  A steady rain began to fall shortly after the match, delaying the three other quarterfinal matches. Nadal advances to the semifinals tomorrow where he will meet the winner of the quarterfinal match between Ivan Dodig and fellow Spaniard Feliciano Lopez.  Nadal is chasing his 6th title in Barcelona, including five consecutive years from 2005-2009.

Year To Date: Who's Hot, Who's Not

Who’s Hot

Novak Djokovic

Saying Dkokovic has had a great start to the year could actually go down as the understatement of the year.  His 2011 campaign has thus far been historically good--he has yet to lose a match and has four titles, including a Slam and two Masters 1000 victories.  His streak of 24 straight wins to start the year has not been built on the backs of second-tier competition, either.  He’s beaten Rafael Nadal twice, Roger Federer three times, and has 8 wins on this streak over top 10 players.  Not bad.  The Djoker did pull out of Monte Carlo, to rest his bones, ease some aches and pains, and get ready for the grueling clay court season.  He’ll play next week on home soil in Belgrade at the Serbian Open--look for the streak to continue, and look for Djokovic to make a deep run at the French Open in May.  Can he get through the clay season unbeaten?  Not likely, but still, a stellar start for the hottest player on tour.

Rafael Nadal

The #1 ranked player in the world is coming off his first tournament victory of 2011, believe it or not, at the Monte Carlo Rolex Masters.  Still, even without a tournament title to his name before April, Nadal has been, as usual, one of the most consistent players on tour.  He suffered an unfortunate leg injury at the Australian Open and got steamrolled by countryman and friend David Ferrer in the quarterfinals.  Since then, though, he has made three straight finals at Masters 1000 events, losing to Djokovic at Indian Wells and Miami and beating Ferrer at Monte Carlo.  The King of Clay is back on the European dirt, and looks to be in good form to make a run at another clay court season sweep.  Nadal has a massive amount of points to defend between now and then end of the French Open, so the Spaniard’s motivation should be unmatched.

Milos Raonic

Though his results are beginning to taper off just a bit after bursting on the scene with his wicked serve at the Australian Open, we still have to include Raonic in the year’s first quarter “Hot List.”  His ranking has shot up 128 spots--he’s currently ranked #28--and he won his first ATP World Tour title in San Jose.  He backed up his performance in San Jose with an appearance in the Memphis final (losing to Andy Roddick on an amazing down the line passing shot), beating Fernando Verdasco at both events.  His results were less-than-stellar at Indian Wells and Miami, but Raonic certainly has a bright future.  And, based on the fact he has almost zero points to defend, his ranking should continue to climb even if we don’t see him in any semis or finals on the red clay.  If Milos can tread water through the clay court season, he could be very dangerous at Wimbledon and back home on the hard courts of North America this summer.

Ryan Sweeting

While there are players who have probably had better seasons than Sweeting, we’re going to give him the nod here because he picked up his first career ATP World Tour Title, and he did it in impressive fashion at the US Clay Court Championships in Houston.  He took out Sam Querrey and Ivan Ljubicic and then beat Kei Nishikori (who just missed this edition of the “Hot List”) in the final.  His ranking has surged into the 60s, which makes him the highest ranked American after the Big Four of Mardy Fish, Roddick, Querrey and John Isner.  He’s also made good showings in the spring hard court Masters events in the States, picking up some nice wins along the way.  Now, let’s see if he can back up these results with a good summer hard court season and maybe even make himself a household name at the US Open in September.

Ivan Dodig

Who?  Dodig has quietly had a fabulous year, also claiming his maiden ATP World Tour title in Zagreb earlier this year with wins over Ljubicic and Guillermo Garcia-Lopez.  His ranking has climbed from the high 80s to the mid 50s, but that will change again on Monday when the new rankings are released--Dodig will benefit from his performance in Barcelona, where he is in the quarterfinals and has a real chance at making the semis (he plays Feliciano Lopez in the quarters).  His results are solid, but what pushed him over the top and onto the “Hot List” is the fact he hasn’t lost to anyone ranked lower than him in 2011.  He has lost to Tomas Berdych (Chennai), Djokovic (Australian Open), Juan Martin Del Potro (Memphis), Janko Tipsarevic (Delray), Robin Soderling (Miami) and Tommy Robredo (Monte Carlo).  Couple that with his victory this week over Raonic in Barcelona, and Dodig is officially hot.

Who’s Not

Fernando Verdasco

Verdasco didn’t have a terrible beginning to the season, reaching the round of 16 at the Australian Open and cruising into the final at San Jose.  That’s when he ran into Raonic, and that’s when his year took a turn for the worse--a lot worse.  Verdasco dropped the San Jose final to the young Canadian on Sunday, and then played him again in the first round at Memphis on Wednesday--he lost that one too.  And thus began a string of disappointing first round losses and his exit from the top 10.  Since the middle of February, Verdasco has a total of 1 win on tour (plus a big win for Spain in Davis Cup).  His first round (or first match, in events in which he had a bye) exits include Memphis, Acapulco, Miami and Monte Carlo.  His only win at Indian Wells came when Richard Berankis retired.   Verdasco is not defending his title in Barcelona this week, so his ranking will drop again next week.  All in all, not the start the Spanish lefty was hoping for in 2011.

Andy Roddick

It’s hard to ding a guy who has actually won a tournament in 2011, but we are going to do it anyway.  Roddick knew he had a big challenge at the outset of the year--a year ago, he dominated the spring Masters 1000 events in the US, reaching the final at Indian Wells and winning Miami.  It was crucial for Roddick to defend those points, especially given his track record on European clay (or lack thereof), and, quite frankly, he didn’t.  The 4th round loss in California wasn’t nearly as disastrous to his ranking as bowing out to Pablo Cuevas in his first match (2nd round with a bye) as defending champion at the Sony Ericsson.  Roddick, to be fair, was battling an illness in Miami, but computers don’t take that into account, and Roddick’s ranking took a beating.  Roddick can make up for these poor results by having a good showing in Europe and then returning home this summer and making some noise on the North American hard courts.  He also has anther chance to make Americans proud in a huge Davis Cup tie in his hometown of Austin, Texas in July.

Marcos Baghdatis

Things have gotten so bad for Baghdatis that apparently people have been sending him abusive messages on Facebook.  He came out with a letter on the social networking site to all his fans to ask for their support, and at the same time chided those who were deriding him.  His year didn’t start all that badly--he made the 3rd round at the Australian Open, losing to Jurgen Melzer, and he followed that up with a quarterfinal appearance at Rotterdam, beating Murray in the 1st round and Feliciano Lopez in the 2nd round.  Unfortunately, that win against Lopez was his last.  He’s riding a long losing streak, and hit rock bottom at the tournament in Morocco two weeks ago with a loss to Andrey Kuznetsov, ranked #244 in the world.  Baghdatis has not been 100% healthy this year, but he is usually at his best on the clay courts, and now is the time for him to turn his season around.  If he suffers early exits in Madrid and Rome, the pressure will be intense at the French Open.  Baghdatis is such a great guy, here’s to hoping he get things going in the right direction.  Right now, though, he’s scuffling.  Badly.

Quarters Set In Barcelona; Five Spaniards To Vie For Semifinal Berths

Five Spaniards won third round matches Thursday to advance to the quarterfinals at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, including world #1 Rafael Nadal.

Nadal needed just under an hour and a half to knock out Colombian Santiago Giraldo in straight sets, 6-3 6-1.  Nadal is looking for his sixth title in Barcelona after missing the tournament last year--he won the event five consecutive years from 2005-2009.  Giraldo, ranked #54, provided a test for the first six games of the match, trading breaks with the King of Clay and mixing up his shots beautifully.  But Nadal proved to be too much for the top-ranked Colombian player.  Once Nadal got his nose out front, Giraldo started to lose confidence and unforced errors started to take their toll.  Nadal cruised into the quarters where he’ll meet #7 seed Frenchman Gael Monfils, who beat his countryman Richard Gasquet 6-4 7-6(7).

Keeping alive the possibility for a rematch of last week’s final in Monte Carlo, David Ferrer easily dispatched Victor Hanescu in the first match of the day on Pista Principal.  Ferrer continued his excellent play on clay with consistent groundstrokes and clever angles, never facing a break point in a 6-3 6-2 win over the 66th ranked Romanian.  Ferrer will face Austrian Jurgen Melzer, the #6 seed, who was the only player to defeat a Spaniard Thursday, taking out #11 seed Albert Montanes after dropping the first set, 6-7(2) 6-3 6-2.

The three other Spanish winners were all on the lower half of the draw, including a monumental win for Nicolas Almagro.  He took down the former #3 player in the world, Nikolay Davydenko 7-6(2) 6-3, assuring himself a spot in the top 10 when the new rankings are released Monday.  After securing the final point, Almagro went into a jubilant celebration with friends and family looking on from his box.  Almagro will be the third Spanish player in the top 10, joining Nadal and Ferrer.

Almagro will face former #1 player in the world Juan Carlos Ferrero in the quarterfinals.  Ferrero, also a Spaniard, is competing in his first tournament since last year’s US Open.  He beat Italian qualifier Simone Vagnozzi in three tough sets, 7-6(3) 4-6 6-4.  Joining the Spanish parade into the quarterfinals was Feliciano Lopez, like Ferrero unseeded in this tournament.  Lopez beat Kei Nishikori of Japan 6-4 7-6(5).  Nishikori was riding a hot streak coming into the tournament, having reached the final in Houston two weeks ago and carrying the highest-ever ranking for a Japanese player.  Lopez will meet surprise quarterfinalist Ivan Dodig of Croatia.  Dodig upset Canadian Milos Raonic, seeded #15, 7-6(0) 4-6 6-3 in the last match of the day on the red clay courts of the Real Club de Tenis.  Raonic burst on scene earlier this year at the Australian Open with a run to the 4th round before falling to Ferrer in four sets.  Ferrer also beat Raonic last week in the 3rd round at Monte Carlo.  Lopez and Dodig, who has made his own impressive run up the rankings this year, will be the only quarterfinal match between two unseeded players.

All quarterfinal matches will be played Friday.  Nadal and Monfils will get things started at 12:30 local time, followed by Ferrer-Melzer, Dodig-Lopez and Almagro-Ferrero.

Nadal & Ferrer Cruise in Barcelona; Soderling Falls

Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer both breezed into the third round today of the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell.  Nadal overwhelmed fellow Spaniard Daniel Gimeno-Traver 6-1 6-1, while Ferrer easily dispatched Argentine Carlos Berlocq 6-2 6-2.

In a tournament with a draw dominated by Spaniards, Nadal and Ferrer are the highlights, fresh off their matchup in the final of the Monte Carlo Masters last Sunday.  Nadal said yesterday in a press conference on the tournament grounds that he was hoping for an encore of last week’s final, which Nadal won in two competitive sets, 6-4 7-5.

Things are looking good for that matchup to take place.  Nadal is obviously the undisputed King of Clay and anything less than an appearance in the final would be a shock to the tennis world.  Ferrer is now the highest seed on his side of the draw, and a clear favorite to reach the final, after #2 seed Andy Murray was forced to withdraw from the tournament with an elbow injury.  The #5 seed, Tomas Berdych, also withdrew before the start of the tournament with gastroenteritis.

Nadal made his first appearance of the week on Pista Principal after missing last year’s tournament and completely dominated his young countryman Gimeno-Traver.  It was clearly not Nadal’s best tennis, but it didn’t need to be--Gimeno-Traver never had a chance to get used to his surroundings.  The world’s #1 raced out to an early lead and never looked back.  Nadal will meet Colombian Santiago Giraldo in the third round.  Giraldo upset #13 seed Thomaz Bellucci in the first round and followed that up with a victory earlier today over wild card Spaniard Albert Ramos 6-3 4-6 6-3.  Nadal and Giraldo have met twice before, with Nadal winning both encounters in straight sets.  Nadal won this event five consecutive times from 2005-2009.

Nadal’s path to the final was made a bit easier from the outset with Berdych’s withdrawl, and only seemed to get easier when #3 seed Robin Soderling was upset later in the day by Croat Ivan Dodig in straight sets, 6-2 6-4.  After a strong start to the season, Soderling has struggled of late, underperforming on the American hard courts before dropping his first match in Barcelona.  Soderling never looked comfortable on the court, and especially struggled with his serve, ending the match with four double faults and zero aces.  When he did get his first serve in, Soderling only managed to win half of those points.  Dodig played aggressively, particularly on break points, cashing in on 5 of 7 opportunities.  He also finished with 9 aces.

Ferrer also met with little resistance from Berlocq, ranked #72 in the world.  Serving at 1-1 in the first set, Ferrer saved 2 break points to hold serve and was never seriously challenged again.  The Spaniard dictated play from the baseline with well-placed groundstrokes en route to a third round date with Romanian Victor Hanescu.  Hanescu upset #14 seed Kevin Anderson from South Africa in straight sets, 6-4 6-4.

In addition to Soderling and Anderson, Argentine Juan Monaco, the #16 seed, was also a victim of the upset bug, losing to Italian qualifier Simone Vagnozzi 6-3 6-2.  In an all-Spanish second round match, Feliciano Lopez beat #12 seed Guillermo Garcia-Lopez in three tough sets, 6-7(2) 6-3 6-4.  Lopez will meet Kei Nishikori, who last week became the highest-ever ranked player from Japan, in the third round.  Nishikori advanced by taking out Lucky Loser Rui Machado, who took Berdych’s spot in the main draw, 6-1 6-4.  Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero, the former #1 ranked player in the world, who has not competed since last year’s US Open, also moved into the third round by defeating Mischa Zverev from Germany.  Zverev was also a Lucky Loser, taking Murray’s place in the main draw.

Other second round winners include #6 seed Jurgen Melzer, #9 seed Richard Gasquet and former top 5 player from Russia Nikolay Davydenko.  Melzer, who beat Roger Federer last week in Monte Carlo, will take on Spaniard Albert Montanes, the #11 seed, in the third round.  Gasquet will be matched up with fellow Frenchman Gael Monfils, seeded #7, for the right to face Nadal in the quarterfinals, assuming Nadal can get by Giraldo.  Davydenko will try to continue his run on the red clay in Bacelona against another Spaniard, #8 seed Nicolas Almagro.  Almagro can move into the top 10 for the first time with a win.