Nadal beats Nishikori in 3 sets at Barcelona Open

<p>BARCELONA, Spain &mdash; Rafael Nadal beat Kei Nishikori 6-0, 2-6, 6-2 Thursday to advance to the quarterfinals of the Barcelona Open.</p>
<p>The 11-time tournament champion looked ready to roll to a quick victory after dominating the first set, but Nishikori responded with some fine net play to level it at 1-1.</p>
<p>Nadal broke Nishikori twice in the decisive set, converting his second match point by driving a forehand winner down the line.</p>
<p>The top-seeded Nadal is still searching for his best tennis after being upset in the Monte Carlo quarterfinals by Andrey Rublev. He needed three sets to beat 111th-ranked Ilya Ivashka of Belarus in his first match in Barcelona on Wednesday.</p>
<p>Nadal will face Britain’s Cameron Norrie next. Norrie advanced after David Goffin retired in the second set of their match due to injury.</p>
<p>Nishikori won the outdoor clay-court tournament in 2014 and 2015 when Nadal was battling injuries.</p>
<p>The tournament was not held last year because of the coronavirus pandemic.</p>
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