Nadal and Djokovic through in Rome, Thiem beaten

Rafael Nadal put his loss to Dominic Thiem in Madrid behind him by dropping just one game against Damir Dzumhur in his opening match of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome.

Four-time champion Novak Djokovic also progressed but Thiem could not build on his Madrid run as he went down to home favourite Fabio Fognini.

Defeat in the quarterfinals last week meant not just the end of Nadal’s 50-set winning streak on clay but also his latest stay as world No.1, with Roger Federer reclaiming the spot.

The King of Clay needs just an hour to conduct his latest masterclass.

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The 7-time Rome champion improves to 52-6 lifetime at #ibi18 with a 6-1 6-0 over Damir Dzumhur. pic.twitter.com/ESrCsgE7Hu

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) May 16, 2018

But Nadal can take it back by winning in Rome and he set his stall out by blitzing Dzumhur 6-1 6-0 in an hour.

It is the 13th time in his career Nadal has dropped only one game in a match, but he is still looking for his first ‘double bagel’.

“It was important, after a loss in Madrid, to come back strong,” the 31-year-old, who received a bye in the opening round, said. “And that’s what I did today.

“I went on court with the right intensity. I don’t know how many mistakes I made, but not many. I also had control, more or less, of a high percentage of the points. That was the way that I want to play.”

Nadal, gearing up for his bid for an 11th French Open title next month, will not have to face Austrian sixth seed Thiem again this week.

After a two-hour battle, Italy’s Fognini prevailed in a raucous atmosphere on the Centrale Court, coming through 6-4 1-6 6-3.

ANALYSIS: Djokovic could miss out on French Open seeding

Djokovic reached the final last year and faces a big ranking drop if he does not come close to matching that.

The Serb has been untroubled thus far and defeated Nikoloz Basilashvili 6-4 6-2 to reach the third round.

The fabulous Fognini!

????????@fabiofogna notches an epic 6-4 1-6 6-3 upset over Dominic Thiem to reach the round of 16 at #ibi18. pic.twitter.com/0X4XaSLERk

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) May 16, 2018

“I thought the atmosphere was unique, phenomenal,” said Djokovic after a rare appearance outside the main court, this time of the sunken Court Pietrangeli.

Another shock saw Kei Nishikori, who continues to work his way back up the rankings after wrist problems, defeat third seed Grigor Dimitrov 6-7(4) 7-5 6-4, while eighth seed John Isner lost in three tie-breaks to Albert Ramos-Vinolas.

Second seed Alexander Zverev, fourth seed Marin Cilic and fifth seed Juan Martin del Potro all went through, Del Potro seeing off in-form Greek teenager Stefanos Tsitsipas 7-5 6-3.

Canadian Denis Shapovalov backed up Tuesday’s win over Tomas Berdych with a 7-6(3) 6-7(5) 6-3 defeat of Robin Haase, while Britain’s Kyle Edmund saw off 16th seed Lucas Pouille 6-2 7-6(3).