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Nadal battles into US Open 3rd round

New York - Rafael Nadal took his US Open record to 22 wins in his last 23 matches when he beat diminutive Argentine Diego Schwartzman 7-6 (7/5), 6-3, 7-5 to reach the third round on Wednesday.

Eighth-seeded Nadal, the 2010 and 2013 champion, came back from a break down in both the second and third sets to book a clash with volatile Italian Fabio Fognini for a place in the last-16.

Nadal lost to Fognini in Rio and Barcelona this year before gaining revenge over the Italian in the Hamburg final in July.

"I feel lucky to be through. It was very humid and Diego was very aggressive so to take the first set was very important," said Nadal, who missed the US Open in 2012 and 2014 through injury.

Nadal had needed four sets to see off Croatian teenager Borna Coric in the first round on Monday and was tested again by 1.73m Schwartzman, the world number 73 who has never beaten a top 10 player.

Nadal surrendered a 5-2 lead in the first set before clinching the tiebreak and was 2-0 down in the second set and 3-2 behind in the third before he rallied.

He claimed victory on a second match point courtesy of a net cord but having committed 40 unforced errors, he will know that there is still plenty of work to do if he is to claim a 15th Grand Slam.

US Open results on Wednesday, the third day of the 2015 tournament at Flushing Meadows (x denotes seeded player):

Men

2nd rd

Novak Djokovic (SRB x1) bt Andreas Haider-Maurer (AUT) 6-4, 6-1, 6-2

Andreas Seppi (ITA x25) bt Teimuraz Gabashvili (RUS) 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7/3), 6-1

Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP x23) bt Pablo Carreo-Busta (ESP) 4-6, 6-4, 6-0, 2-6, 6-4

David Goffin (BEL x14) bt Ricardas Berankis (LTU) 5-7, 6-4, 3-6, 6-2, 6-1

Milos Raonic (CAN x10) bt Fernando Verdasco (ESP) 6-2, 6-4, 6-7 (5/7), 7-6 (7/1)

Feliciano Lopez (ESP x18) bt Mardy Fish (USA) 2-6, 6-3, 1-6, 7-5, 6-3

Fabio Fognini (ITA x32) bt Pablo Cuevas (URU) 6-3, 6-4, 6-4

Rafael Nadal (ESP x8) bt Diego Schwartzman (ARG) 7-6 (7/5), 6-3, 7-5

Benot Paire (FRA) bt Marsel Ilhan (TUR) 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3

Tommy Robredo (ESP x26) bt Samuel Groth (AUS) 6-4, 7-6 (7/3), 6-4

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA x19) bt Marcel Granollers (ESP) 6-3, 6-4, 6-3

Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR) bt Illya Marchenko (UKR) 6-4, 7-6 (7/2), 4-6, 6-4

Marin Cilic (CRO x9) bt Evgeny Donskoy (RUS) 6-2, 6-3, 7-5

Mikhail Kukushkin (KAZ) bt Grigor Dimitrov (BUL x17) 6-3, 7-6 (7/2), 2-6, 4-6, 6-4

Jeremy Chardy (FRA x27) bt Martin Klizan (SVK) 7-5, 6-4, 7-6 (7/1)

David Ferrer (ESP x7) bt Filip Krajinovic (SRB) 7-5, 7-5, 7-6 (7/4)

Women

2nd rd

Serena Williams (USA x1) bt Kiki Bertens (NED) 7-6 (7/5), 6-3

Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA) bt Coco Vandeweghe (USA) 6-2, 6-1

Madison Keys (USA x19) bt Tereza Smitkov (CZE) 6-1, 6-2

Agnieszka Radwanska (POL x15) bt Magda Linette (POL) 6-3, 6-2

Belinda Bencic (SUI x12) bt Misaki Doi (JPN) 5-7, 7-6 (7/3), 6-3

Venus Williams (USA x23) bt Irina Falconi (USA) 6-3, 6-7 (2/7), 6-2

Anett Kontaveit (EST) bt Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS x31) 7-5, 6-4

Madison Brengle (USA) bt Anna Tatishvili (USA) 6-3, 6-2

Darya Kasatkina (RUS) bt Ana Konjuh (CRO) 6-4, 6-4

Kristina Mladenovic (FRA) bt Bojana Jovanovski (SRB) 7-5, 6-1

Elina Svitolina (UKR x17) bt Kaia Kanepi (EST) 6-3, 6-4

Ekaterina Makarova (RUS x13) bt Lauren Davis (USA) 6-1, 6-2

Roberta Vinci (ITA) bt Denisa Allertov (CZE) 2-6, 6-3, 6-1

Mariana Duque (COL) bt Ocane Dodin (FRA) 6-1, 5-7, 6-2

Eugnie Bouchard (CAN x25) bt Polona Hercog (SLO) 6-3, 6-7 (2/7), 6-3

Dominika Cibulkova (SVK) bt Jessica Pegula (USA) 5-7, 7-5, 6-3

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