Indian Wells (California): Spaniard Rafael Nadal stayed on course for his first ATP title of the year with a 6-1, 6-3 demolition of American wildcard Donald Young in the Pacific Life Open third round on Monday.
The defending champion and second seed outplayed his 18-year-old opponent from the baseline, sealing victory in one hour, 22 minutes at Indian Wells Tennis Garden.
Third-seeded Serb Novak Djokovic also eased into the fourth round, crushing Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-3, 6-2, but fifth-seeded Spaniard David Ferrer was upset 7-6, 6-7, 7-6 by South Korea's Lee Hyung-taik.
"All matches are important for me, but especially here where I am defending my title because last year I played my best tournament here," Nadal, 21, said.
"I didn't play my best tennis today, but I didn't play bad. I think he started very nervous. It was a comfortable match."
The muscular Spaniard, who beat Djokovic in last year's final, broke Young in the first, third and seventh games to blast through the opening set.
In a match between two left-handers, the world No.2 broke again in the sixth game of the second set when the American teenager hit a forehand long before serving out for the win.
Nadal, who piled up six ATP titles in his 2007 campaign including a third successive French Open, will next meet Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who beat fellow Frenchman Paul-Henri Mathieu 7-6, 6-4.
Australian Open champion Djokovic was delighted to complete his second straights-sets victory of the week.
Experience gain
"I think I have gained something in my game," the 20-year-old said after winning in just over an hour.
"I have figured out with experience how I should play in the first couple of rounds. I didn't push myself too much and didn't play at my top level. It's good that I am rationing my spending of energy."
Ninth-seeded American James Blake powered past Spaniard Carlos Moya 6-3, 6-4 to set up a fourth-round clash with Richard Gasquet of France, who crushed Argentina's Juan Ignacio Chela 6-2, 6-1.
Urged on by partisan fans crammed into the Stadium Court, Blake dominated the former world No.1 from the baseline to wrap up victory in 75 minutes.
After breezing through the opening set, Blake traded a service break with Moya in the second before again breaking his opponent in the ninth game to lead 5-4.
The 28-year-old served out to book his place in the fourth round, clinching the final point with a searing backhand winner down the line.
"I'm very happy. I've had a lot of tough matches with him and I think that evened the score," Blake said after drawing level with Moya at 6-6 in career meetings.
Eighteenth-seeded Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis, runner-up at the 2006 Australian Open, was upset 6-3, 6-7, 6-0 by Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland while 16th-seeded Guillermo Canas edged past fellow Argentinian Juan Monaco 6-3, 6-7, 6-2.
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