Rafael Nadal did not waste much effort in his victory over Ryan Sweeting of U.S. In a 6’5” opponent, he found somebody who was not getting mortally hurt by his over spun forehand. But all weapons combined did the job. The new 15-20 kms. faster serve was in full view. Two aces in a single game was a far cry from the old two aces per set. Of course, 63% of first serve is below the safe 70% Nadal is used to. 25 unforced errors would be appalling to the old Nadal who was habitual to winning by committing less errors than his opponent. But he hit 36 winners which epitomizes his new style of play. He occasionally hit short, but Ryan Sweeting could not derive any advantage from that. The volley, improved as it is, is still in a developing stage. Nadal was also experimenting with his net play alongside his new serve. At 4-0 in the third set, Nadal served two double faults and gave the only break to Sweeting. He made sure that he broke the very first game in all the three sets, so that he had enough margin for practice. The score line at the end of one hour forty two minutes was 6-2, 6-1, 6-1. He is marching towards the peak with measured steps.
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