Rafael Nadal has defeated Dominic Thiem of Austria in straight sets 6-7, 6-4 to clinch his 5th Madrid Open Title and climb into the World's Top 4.
The home favorite has now claimed 3 straight titles after his Barcelona Open and Monte Carlo Masters victories, while taking his record on clay to 15-nothing.
The opener proved to be an uphill struggle for the Spaniard on Sunday as the Austrian Young Gun hit a string of punishing ground strokes to force Nadal to a tiebreak. But, the King of Clay managed to sap energy out of Thiem to take the first 7-6 and went on to grab the following set with relative ease 6-4, as the world Number 7 failed to keep pace with the resilient left-hander in the thrilling final.