Tennis-Nadal wins Spanish battle on eve of 21st birthday

PARIS, June 2 (Reuters) Holder Rafael Nadal reached the last 16 of the French Open with a 6-1 6-3 6-2 demolition of fellow Spaniard Albert Montanes today.

The world number two, who turns 21 tomorrow, next meets Australia's Lleyton Hewitt or Finn Jarkko Nieminen.

Second seed Nadal, bidding to become the first man since Bjorn Borg in 1980 to collect three successive titles on the Paris clay, wore down world number 50 Montanes with relentless groundstrokes.

Nadal, whose 81-match winning streak on clay was ended by world number one Roger Federer in the Hamburg final last month, advanced when Montanes netted a forehand on the second match point.

REUTERS HK BST0022