Stuttgart, Germany - Top-seeded Spaniard Rafael Nadal cruised in second round action at the Mercedes Cup on Thursday.
Nadal recorded a straight set win over Germany’s Philipp Kohlschreiber, 6-3, 6-3, on the red clay. He has now won 90 of his last 91 matches on clay and is on course for his sixth title of the year and first on clay since winning the French Open earlier this year.
Nadal will next face eighth-seeded Argentine Juan Monaco in the quarterfinal round on Friday.
Monaco scored a 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 win over Austria’s Stefan Koubek on Thursday. He lost his only career match against Nadal.
Third-seeded Czech Tomas Berdych was ousted in second-round action, falling to Feliciano Lopez, 6-0, 6-3. The Spaniard will next face sixth-seeded fellow countryman Juan Carlos Ferrero in the quarters.
Ferrero beat Argentina’s Diego Hartfield, 6-4, 1-6, 6-3, on Thursday.
Ferrero won the only meeting with Lopez, downing him in straight sets on the clay in Barcelona in 2005.
