Rafael Nadal Tops Alexei Popyrin in Straight Sets, Advances to Round 2 at French Open

Rafael Nadal continued his dominance at Roland Garros with a 6-3, 6-2, 7-6(3) win over Alexei Popyrin in Round 1 of the 2021 French Open.

The 13-time winner of this event cruised through the first two sets before finding some rare resistance in the third. Popyrin went up a break and built a 5-2 lead in the third set before settling for a tiebreak.

Nadal eventually took over for the win, improving to 101-2 in his career at Roland Garros. It sets the No. 3 seed up for a second-round match against Richard Gasquet, who defeated Hugo Gaston in a first-round battle of Frenchmen.

Few have been able to match up with Nadal on clay courts during his career, but he was not overlooking his 21-year-old opponent in Round 1.

"Popyrin is a dangerous one," he said, per ATPWorldTour.com.

Nadal showed he was serious early in the match, winning his first two sets thanks to his excellent serve:

The Spanish star didn't face a break point in the first set and saved the only chance Popyrin had in the second set.

It was a different story in the third as the underdog showcased his athleticism in getting to everything.

A break in the sixth game allowed Popyrin the chance to take a set from Nadal, something that hasn't happened often in Paris.

Nadal eventually saved two set points and fought his way back to 6-6, keeping the momentum with a 7-3 win in the tiebreak.

It wasn't a perfect match from Nadal, but he won 81 percent of his points on his first serve and 72 percent of service points overall. That would be enough to beat most opponents as he seeks his 14th Roland Garros title.

Considering he already has a statue outside the court, it will be difficult to bet against the 34-year-old.