World No 1 Rafael Nadal sharpened his serve and cruised to a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Pablo Cuevas at the ATP Cup on Monday in a flawless display as he fine tunes for the Australian Open.
Later, a near-perfect Novak Djokovic won both his singles and doubles rubbers as Serbia beat France 2-1 to reach the quarter-finals in Brisbane on Monday.
The 19-time Grand Slam champion hit 26 winners and fired down seven aces against the world No 45 to clinch Spain’s victory over Uruguay in Perth after Roberto Bautista Agut beat Franco Roncadelli 6-1, 6-2.
Spain play Japan on Wednesday with the winner qualifying for the knockout phase in Sydney, while the loser will have to rely on other results. Underdog Cuevas had beaten Nadal in Rio four years ago, a feat particularly impressive for having been played on the Spaniard’s preferred clay surface.
But he was never in the contest Monday. “I played better than the other day and it’s a very positive victory against an opponent I have a lot of respect for,” said Nadal, while praising the packed stadium as the reason why he keeps going.
“Because of these very special feelings when you are on court in front of a great crowd supporting, that’s one of the reasons why you wake up every morning and go on the practice court with the right passion and the clear goal to improve something.”
Nadal started with an ace and looked sharp but Cuevas, who suffered a tame defeat against Yoshihito Nishioka in his opener, matched with clean striking from the baseline.
Nadal gained control by targeting Cuevas’ inconsistent serve and he broke four times in the 73-minute match. The 33-year-old notably served strongly and faced just one break point for the match after struggling in his season opener against Nikoloz Basilashvili.
World No 10 Bautista Agut has had a soft draw to start the season against ATP tour debutants Roncadelli and Aleksandre Metreveli, who he crushed 6-0, 6-0 on Saturday.
Unranked Roncadelli replaced injured Martin Cuevas, the younger brother of Pablo. The left-hander unleashed several menacing slices and hit the scoreboard in the third game to energise the near capacity crowd, before Bautista Agut put the foot down and he finished with 17 winners in the 57-minute match.
“It isn’t easy playing a match like this, but I’m happy for him to have this experience,” Bautista Agut said.
Djokovic in top form
After Benoit Paire beat Dusan Lajovic to give France a 1-0 lead, Djokovic overpowered Gael Monfils in straight sets then teamed with Viktor Troicki to beat Nicolas Mahut and Edouard Roger-Vasselin 6-3, 6-6 (5/7), 10-3 in a spirited and emotional doubles clash.
The win, combined with South Africa’s earlier defeat of Chile, means Serbia are assured of topping Group A with one round remaining.
Djokovic was in superb touch to level the tie following Lajovic’s three-set loss to Paire in the opening rubber.
He had beaten Monfils in all 15 previous meetings and that perfect record never looked in danger as he dominated the Frenchman from the outset.
Djokovic, one of the best returners in men’s tennis, put relentless pressure on Monfils’ serve throughout, breaking him three times.
Djokovic said both he and Monfils had been affected by the humidity on Pat Rafter Arena.
“It was definitely some of the most humid conditions I’ve ever had in my career. I mean tonight was brutal,” he said.
“Obviously playing Gael is never easy. You come into the court knowing you are going to have a lot of exchanges, a lot of rallies. He’s a great fighter.”
As the Frenchman began to show the effects of the humidity, Djokovic stepped up the pressure and eased to victory in 90 minutes in front of hundreds of chanting Serbian fans.
Paire was forced to overcome both his opponent and his emotions in his 6-2, 6-7 (6/8), 6-4 win.
Paire won the first set comfortably and broke Lajovic to serve for the set at 5-4.
But the Serbian broke back and then took the tiebreak against an increasingly angry Paire, who promptly smashed his racket and then threw two water bottles onto the court at the change of ends.
French captain Gilles Simon tried to calm him down but it took a courtside visit from Monfils to ease the tensions and Paire regrouped to take the third set and the match.
“Honestly, you know, if I’m alone on court I can break more than the racket, I can destroy all my rackets and leave the court,” he said.
“So that’s why they told me, just stay relaxed and you will see what happens.”
In the early tie, former world number five Kevin Anderson showed he was on his way back after an injury-ruined 2019 when he thrashed Chile’s Cristian Garin 6-0, 6-3.
Anderson’s win clinched the tie for South Africa following Lloyd Harris’s 6-4, 6-4 victory over Nicolas Jarry.
Raven Klaasen and Ruan Roelofse made it a clean sweep for South Africa when they beat Garin and Jarry in the doubles 1-6, 6-3, 10-7.
Nishioka notches second upset
In the earlier Group B tie, Nishioka notched his second upset to start the season after downing world No 26 Basilashvili in straight sets, as injury-hit Japan continued to surprise.
The world No 72 won 6-2, 6-3 to clinch the tie for unbeaten Japan after Go Soeda prevailed over Georgia’s Aleksandre Metreveli in three sets. Japan, who whitewashed Uruguay on Saturday, are unbeaten despite the withdrawal of injured star Kei Nishikori and Yasutaka Uchiyama, their third best player, before the tournament.
They will attempt to continue their gutsy run against Spain, where Nishioka faces the daunting task of playing Nadal. “I believe I can beat him,” Nishioka said. “I change my game plan against each opponent and I have a plan (against Nadal). If it works, maybe I have a chance.”
Winless teams Uruguay and Georgia are out of contention.
(With AFP inputs)
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