Eighth seed Rafael Nadal, who arrives at the Shanghai Rolex Masters after a finals appearance in Beijing, was handed a tough draw this week. He came through his first test against big serving Ivo Karlovic, 7-5, 6-7, 7-6, to reach the third round.

Strong Start From Karlovic

Despite a forehand passing winner from Nadal to begin with (a shot that would guide the Spaniard to victory), Karlovic grabbed hold of the immediate break with a volley winner and a strong cross court forehand. He then consolidated with a routine and reliable service game, holding for 2-0. The former world number one had to fight to hold his own, unleashing two forehand passing shots for 1-2. Karlovic, with back to back aces, continued his trend of strong service games, and Nadal held his own fairly comfortably too. Once the score leveled at 3-3, the Spaniard had to win four points in a row to hold, crawling out of a crucial game. Then, sealed with an ace, Karlovic edged ahead 5-4.

Nadal Fights Back

In a return game that Nadal later described as 'one of the best of my career,' and 'almost a miracle,' (yes, it was that good) the Spaniard had three back to back unbelievable return winners, breaking serve and evening out at 5-5. With a series of fistpumps and shouts of 'vamos!', Nadal continued his fight back, consolidating to take the first set, 7-5.

Despite two more firing forehand passing shots from the pumped up Spaniard, Karlovic held serve for 1-1. Then, with an amazing cross court smash, Rafa reciprocated with a love hold. The 14 time Slam champion had a testy game at 2-2, having to escape from deuce, but he did so brilliantly, still edging ahead in the second. Both continued to hold serve convincingly until a big turning point seemed to pop up, with Nadal facing three break points. However, the Spaniard, known for his fighting spirit, saved all three with some incredible play, including a backhand down the line winner. He kept things even, and eventually the set would be decided in a tiebreak.

Nadal raced to grab hold of a mini-break, but the Croatian snatched it back with an amazing point, finishing with a sharp drop shot. Karlovic remained the dominant player in the tiebreak, and with a passing volley he took the second set tiebreak and took the match to a decider.

Tight Decider

Both players had tight service games to begin the decider, but seemed to find their rhythm shortly afterwards. Nadal, with two huge cross court forehand winners, held to love to level up at 2-2. Karlovic was particulary successful at the net in this set, who was able to intercept Rafa's attempts at passing shots, a shot that had been hugely successful throughout the match. The big server's unlikely razor sharp movement at the net edged him ahead 3-2. Both were serving well at this point and appeared solid, so kept things close and even with no drama during service games. However, Nadal suddenly had an opportunity, getting to 0-30 on the Croatian's serve with a lob. Karlovic recovered though, and with just one service hold from each player, the decider would be taken to a tiebreak. 

Nadal hit a cross court forehand winner, giving him a boost of confidence, which spurred him ahead in the tiebreak. With a great touch on a volley, the Spaniard saw match point, and with an error from Karlovic, the eighth seed wrapped up the match, 7-5, 6-7, 7-5. It was an incredibly tough opener for Nadal. There's only so much you can do against a player like Karlovic, who gives you no chances on his own serve. However, overall, Rafa played a great match and fought hard to come through. Next up for him is Milos Raonic in the 3rd Round.