Nadal wins three-hour battle to reach Madrid fourth round

Rafael Nadal continued his comeback from injury at the Mutua Madrid Open on Monday, when he battled past Pedro Cachin 6-1, 6-7(5), 6-3 to reach the fourth round at a tour-level event for the first time since 2022.

The Spaniard is a record five-time champion in Madrid and showed flashes of his vintage best against Cachin, running around his backhand at times to dictate with his inside-out forehand in front of a vocal home crowd on Manolo Santana Stadium.

"Some moments were good, some moments not good, but I found a way to go through," Nadal said. "In the third set, even with some mistakes, I was able to be a little more unpredictable and that probably changed the match."

The 37-year-old was pushed hard by Cachin, who won his only tour-level title on clay in Gstaad last year, but the lefty came up with the goods in the third set. After dropping the second set, Nadal found extra whip and power off the forehand wing in the decider, while he looked physically strong to secure a hard-fought victory after three hours and four minutes.

"I am enjoying. Let's see how I wake up tomorrow," Nadal said on his fitness. "I don't know. Day by day I am enjoying playing at home, it means everything to me. I am trying my best to keep dreaming. Tomorrow is another day to keep dreaming. To keep playing in front of this amazing crowd and to me that means everything."

Mesmerising Manolo Santana Stadium 🌟

Spanish icon @RafaelNadal continues to build momentum on home clay...@MutuaMadridOpen | #MMOPEN pic.twitter.com/vYJ00f4cRO

— ATP Tour (@atptour) April 29, 2024

Nadal is competing in his third tournament of the year, having lost in the second round in Barcelona last week. With his victory against World No. 91 Cachin, Nadal improved his clay-court record against players outside the Top 50 in the PIF ATP Rankings to 162-1 since 2005. His only defeat in that 19-year period came against No. 73 Horacio Zeballos in Vina del Mar.

Cachin had lost his previous 15 tour-level matches before arriving in Madrid but fought valiantly to put pressure on the former World No. 1.

Nadal holds a 59-14 tournament record in Madrid and will aim to reach his 10th consecutive quarter-final in the Spanish capital when he plays Jiri Lehecka.

The 37-year-old, who defeated World No. 11 Alex de Minaur in the second round, was dominant in the first set against Cachin, firing 14 winners and forcing his opponent deep with his heavy forehand to lead in the pair’s first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting.

The Spaniard then saved two set points in the second set on Cachin’s serve, rallying from a double break down and 3-5 behind to level at 5-5. Both players were then broken before Cachin eventually sealed the set on his third set point with a backhand return winner.

The 29-year-old has only won two tour-level matches since last July, though, and struggled to maintain his level in the decider, with Nadal upping his. The 36-time Masters 1000 champ cut down on errors in the third set and demonstrated his physical capabilities by consistently tracking down balls during the third hour of the match.

Nadal overpowered Cachin with his bulldozing forehand during the closing stages of the third set and let out a roar after earning his sixth tour-level win of the season.

Earlier, Czech Lehecka beat Brazilian qualifier Thiago Monteiro 6-4, 7-6(7) to advance to the fourth round at an ATP Masters 1000 event for the second time. The 22-year-old has never faced Nadal.