Spain's Rafael Nadal celebrates winning his second round match against Germany's Yannick Hanfmann. (Reuters) Rafael Nadal put on a clinical performance to ease past German qualifier Yannick Hanfmann 6-2 6-3 6-4 and reach the third round of the Australian Open on Wednesday as the Spaniard remained on course for a men’s record 21st Grand Slam title.
Rafa rolls on πͺ
πͺπΈ @RafaelNadal puts in a top performance to move past Yannick Hanfmann 6-2 6-3 6-4. #AusOpen β’ #AO2022
π₯: @wwos β’ @espn β’ @eurosport β’ @wowowtennis pic.twitter.com/MjWumk2z27β #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 19, 2022
The only former champion left in the men’s draw at Melbourne Park, Nadal is tied on 20 majors with Swiss Roger Federer and world number one Novak Djokovic, who are both absent from the tournament.
The 2009 champion’s only previous meeting with the 126th-ranked Hanfmann came on the Roland Garros clay in 2019 when Nadal lost just six games en route to a straight-sets victory.
The 30-year-old German did slightly better on a windy day at the Rod Laver Arena but it was not enough to trouble Nadal, who hit 30 winners and broke his opponent’s serve four times in the match while saving both breakpoints he faced.
Nadal needed five match points before sealing victory when Hanfmann sent a forehand long. The sixth seed will next meet either Russian Karen Khachanov or Benjamin Bonzi of France for a place in the fourth round.
Zverev advances
Olympic gold medalist Alexander Zverev advanced to the third round at the Australian Open and continued a streak at Grand Slam tournaments by beating Australian veteran John Millman 6-4, 6-4, 6-0.
The third-seeded Zverev has a perfect record against players at their home majors. Heβs now 2-0 against Australians at the Australian Open, 3-0 against French players at Roland Garros and 4-0 against Americans at the U.S. Open. He has never faced a British player at Wimbledon.
Job done β
π©πͺ@AlexZverev defeats John Millman 6-4 6-4 6-0 to advance to the third round of #AO2022.
π₯: @wwos β’ @espn β’ @Eurosport β’ @wowowtennis #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/RhzynJ8UMY
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 19, 2022
βIβm prepared that everyone will hate me after the match. I think itβs quite accurate. Iβll get a lot of boos,β he said jokingly during his on-court TV interview to cheers from the crowd. βTo be honest, sports needs the atmosphere. Sports needs the people. I enjoy the atmosphere. I enjoy the noise.β
Zverev will next play Radu Albot. The Moldovan qualifier beat Australian wild-card entry Aleksandar Vukio in the second round.
Alcaraz sets up Berrettini blockbuster
Next Gen ATP Finals champion Carlos Alcaraz moved into the third round on Wednesday with a 6-2 6-1 7-5 demolition of seasoned Serb Dusan Lajovic at the 1573 Arena, setting up a mouthwatering clash with seventh seed Matteo Berrettini.
In a sport dominated in recent years by thirty-somethings like Nadal and Novak Djokovic, Alcaraz is planting the Gen Z flag and having older, would-be Grand Slam contenders looking nervously over their shoulders.
A 141st-ranked qualifier at last year’s Australian Open, Alcaraz has come a long way in a hurry, his 2021 season laden with impressive milestones.
The year included his maiden ATP title on clay at Umag, Croatia, a main draw debut at Wimbledon and a sensational quarter-final run at the US Open only stopped by a thigh injury.
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