Rafael Nadal Beats Tomas Berdych, Clinches Spot in Australian Open Quarterfinals

No. 2 Rafael Nadal beat unseeded Tomas Berdych 6-0, 6-1, 7-6 (4) on Sunday (Australian Eastern Time) in the fourth round of the Australian Open at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne.

The two players' efforts on their first serves proved to be the primary difference. Berdych had trouble getting his first serve in all match, as he did so on just six of 16 occasions in the opening set and 47 percent overall.

Meanwhile, Nadal's first serve was in on 69 percent of occasions, and he won those 45 of 56 times.

Berdych also committed 32 unforced errors compared to Nadal's 17.

The turning point in the match occurred in the first game with Nadal serving.

Down 40-15, Berdych won three straight points off a forehand winner and two Nadal unforced errors to force break point. However, two Berdych errors and a Nadal ace helped the favorite hold serve.

Nadal never looked back from that moment onward, as Berdych never had game point for the rest of the first set. The Czech also committed 10 unforced errors in the first set compared to Nadal's three.

The first set results were surprising, as Ben Rothenberg of the New York Times noted when Nadal went up 4-0:

Prior to his round-of-16 match, Berdych had upset No. 13 Kyle Edmund in straight sets and No. 18 Diego Schwartzman in addition to a straight-sets victory over unseeded Robin Hasse, so the Sunday result was a bit stunning given his excellent form leading into Sunday.

Nadal won an early break in the second set and cruised to a 6-1 win. Near the end of the set, the Evening Standard wrote: "To say this match is one-sided is a total understatement."

Berdych fought hard in the third and even found himself with set point on Nadal's serve. However, Nadal then won three straight points to force a tiebreaker, which he took 7-4.

Nadal will now face unseeded Frances Tiafoe on Tuesday in the quarterfinals.

Tiafoe has upset No. 5 Kevin Anderson and No. 20 Grigor Dimitrov en route to his quarterfinal appearance. The 21-year-old American has never faced Nadal.