Spaniard triumphs 6-1, 7-6 (3) over
Australian in BercyNadal aiming to win first
Paris Masters title at eighth attemptNot many people in
Tennis know
Rafael Nadal better than Francisco Roig, who has been part of his coaching team since 2005 and was among the few allowed courtside in Bercy on Thursday to watch his friend beat the accomplished Australian Jordan Thompson 6-1, 7-6 (3).
What Roig saw was a contented, fit and buzzing Nadal move smoothly into the quarter-finals of the Paris Masters – which he has not won in seven attempts – where he will play another Spaniard who knows him nearly as well, Pablo Carreño Busta.