MADRID (REUTERS) - Rafa Nadal launched the defence of his Madrid Open title by breezing past Juan Monaco 6-1 6-0 on Wednesday to rediscover his touch on his favoured clay after surprise exits in his last two tournaments.
The world number one went out in the quarter-finals at both Monte Carlo and Barcelona last month, but his extra quality shone through in his second-round match against the 56th-ranked Monaco.
Nadal, seeking a fourth Madrid Open title, stormed into a 2-0 lead and never looked back.
Although he was not at his best, the power and accuracy of his shots were too much for the Argentine, with the match ending in 68 minutes.
The Spaniard is gearing up for the French Open at Roland Garros, where he has won a record eight titles.
In the last nine seasons, he has won at least two European clay court titles ahead of the French grand slam, but he is yet to win in his home continent this year, with his only 2014 victory on the red dust coming in Rio de Janeiro in February.
"All the wins are useful to improve your confidence. At the start it was more difficult, I moved nervously. Then after that I played better than I have been doing," Nadal told reporters.
He now faces a quarter-final against Jarkko Nieminen, who beat Igor Sijsling 6-3 6-2. "We know each other very well, we've played a lot of times. He is a fighter and left-handed as well so it will be a tough game," Nadal said of the 57th-ranked Finn.
Women's number one Serena Williams remained on track for her 60th career title as she powered past Peng Shuai 6-2 6-3 in Madrid.
It has been a patchy season for the American, who won the Miami Masters in March, but followed that by exiting in the early rounds in Charleston.
Having taken a month out to rediscover her form she looked strong against Peng, ranked 42 in the world, winning eight of the first nine points to break serve.
Williams was dominant on her serve and the Chinese failed to unsettle her. Williams now faces a quarter-final against Spanish number one Carla Suarez Navarro, who beat Alison Riske 6-2 6-4.
