Top seed Rafael Nadal extended his current clay court win streak to 31 matches as the Spaniard overcame an early run of breaks to post a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Santiago Giraldo on Thursday at the ATP Barcelona Open. Nadal is bidding for a sixth title at his "home" event in seven editions after missing 2010 due to treatment on a knee injury.
He moved into the quarter-finals in less than 90 minutes, surviving a first set with five breaks of serve against a South American opponent. But Nadal did not hang about after securing the opening set. He took a 3-0 lead in the second and quickly closed it out. The number one was last beaten on clay at Roland Garros in 2009 by Robin Soderling in the fourth round.
Nadal now stands an ATP-leading 26 wins and four losses this season. He is 27-1 in Barcelona. He will on Friday face Gael Monfils, who beat French compatriot Richard Gasquet 6-4, 7-6 (9/7) in their third-round encounter. Fourth-seeded Monte Carlo finalist David Ferrer got a Spanish win as he defeated Romanian Victor Hanescu 6-3, 6-2.
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