Rafael Nadal Defeats Cameron Norrie to Advance to 2021 French Open 4th Round

Rafael Nadal continued his path to a 14th French Open title with a 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 win over Cameron Norrie in Round 3.

The 35-year-old hasn't lost a match at Roland Garros since 2016 and has now won 32 straight sets at this event, including a perfect 9-0 start to the 2021 campaign.

Saturday's win represents Nadal's third victory over Norrie already this year after straight-set victories at the Australian Open in February and the Barcelona Open in April.

The third-round battle on Court Suzanne-Lenglen featured more quality play from Nadal.

The Spanish star excelled in the first set, avoiding any break opportunities while showcasing great coverage on his way to a 6-3 win.

There was more drama in the second set, as two breaks helped Norrie take a 3-1 advantage. Had he held some of his service games, he could have accomplished the rare feat of taking a set from Nadal.

This plan didn't work, as the No. 3 seed won five straight games to win the second set.

Nadal got more aggressive and finished 6-of-6 on net points in the second set.

The third set was back to normal for the favorite, earning the one break he needed to get ahead before closing it out with relative ease.

Norrie performed well with limited mistakes in the match; he just struggled to get winners past Nadal, who is the best clay-court player ever. He ended up winning just 52 percent of his service points and was broken six times.

It allowed Nadal to advance to the fourth round for a match against Jannik Sinner.