By Julien Pretot
PARIS - Claycourt master Rafael Nadal powered his way into the fourth round of his beloved French Open as his campaign for a record-extending 13th title picked up momentum with a merciless 6-1 6-4 6-0 demolition of Italian Stefano Travaglia on Friday.
The second seed, looking to match Roger Federer's record of 20 men's Grand Slam singles titles, will next meet 20-year-old American Sebastian Korda, one of his biggest admirers.
"That means that I have been on the TV for such a long time, that's the main thing. The same like when I was a kid, I was watching (Pete) Sampras, (Andre) Agassi, Carlos Moya, etc," said Nadal, who has yet to lose a set in this year's edition.
"Another negative thing that means is that I am 34. That's another point that is not beautiful. But I'm happy to hear that. I know he's playing great. He's a very young kid with a lot of power. I think he has an amazing future -- hopefully not yet."
Nadal faced little resistance on court Philippe Chatrier, hitting 28 winners as the stars start to align for the Spaniard.
Never change 😂@RafaelNadal #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/iTdcONxUuI
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) October 2, 2020
"The scoreline is because I did a lot of good things, I went to the net more often, I was more aggressive," he said.
"I played my best match here at Roland Garros this year."
Nadal, in his 16th consecutive appearance at Roland Garros since his triumphant debut in 2005, started in dominant fashion, winning the first nine points.
After 23 minutes, the first set was already in the bag. Travaglia had only managed six points, being completely overwhelmed by the Spaniard's power.
The 74th-ranked Italian played deeper early in the second set and Nadal found himself with a little more of a challenge.
He broke for 4-3 but in the following game faced his first break point, which he saved to extend his lead to 5-3, then held to love to move two sets up.
Travaglia's resistance cost him dearly as he collapsed in the third set, managing only eight points.
"I made a step forward in a lot of ways," said Nadal. "I think he played a great second set, it was close. I was able to find a way."
Reuters