French Open: Rafael Nadal Breezes Past Richard Gasquet As Spanish Star Enjoys Perfect 35th Birthday Gift

Rafael Nadal celebrated his 35th birthday in style with a straight sets win over Richard Gasquet on Thursday to reach the French Open third round.

Rafael Nadal celebrated his 35th birthday in style with a straight sets win over Richard Gasquet on Thursday to reach the French Open third round. Nadal, the 13-time champion in Paris and chasing a record-setting 21st Grand Slam title, won 6-0, 7-5, 6-2 to register his 17th career victory in 17 meetings with France's 53rd-ranked Gasquet. "Well, of course it's better to win 16 in a row than lose 16 in a row, no?," said Nadal. "When you go to the match and you have been winning all the last 16 times, of course the confidence is a little bit higher than when you have a tougher head-to-head. "But I respect Richard and I know how good he is." In a match played in an empty Court Philippe Chatrier due to a 9pm Covid-19 curfew, Gasquet won just nine points in the first set. He managed a brief show of defiance from 2-5 to 5-5 in the second set but eventually his resistance was broken when Nadal carved out a break for 4-2 in the third set.