It was a battle between a legendary veteran and the future of the sport, as Rafael Nadal and Nick Kyrgios met on the clay in Madrid. And on this day it was all Nadal. He defeated Kyrgios 6-3, 6-1 to advance to the quarterfinals of the Mutua Madrid Open.

 Kyrgios brought his formidable weapons into battle against the King of Clay and was aggressive against the left-hander early in the match. But while his aggressiveness produced mixed results, Nadal was steady-as-you go on the dirt, striking deep, crisp groundstrokes as Krygios’ appeared to lose focus. Nadal forced the 22-year old into a bulk load of unforced errors as he took the first set.

Nadal quickly broke Kyrgios in the second set and confused the Australian by mixing up his service locations. He was able to find his one-two punch and took control of the match, striking from every part of the court. As Nadal found his groove, Krygios simply did not appear engaged as the 30-year old took the wind out of his sails.  And as spectators waited for the “Next Gen” player to find that spark and fire that has appeared in the past, it never came.

The big-hitter was never able to utilize his huge serve as a weapon and struck way too many errant shots to be a factor in the match.

On Wednesday, the Spaniard stated that he did not play well against Fabio Fognini, but it will be difficult to find much wrong with his performance on Thursday. Nadal underscored his dominance on clay and displayed why he should be considered the favorite to win his tenth title at Roland Garros.

“I think I played really well tonight. Since the beginning of the match, I committed just a few errors. I think I returned the ball very well, even better than normally,” Nadal said. “I think I served very well, committed very few errors. I think I made a step forward compared to yesterday. Of course, to be able to win 6-3, 6-1, whatever the second was, I can't remember, I think its great news. I think it's not normal to win against an opponent like this because Nick is a really good opponent.”

Nadal will face David Goffin next, as he looks to take his 5th Madrid title and continue his winning streak on clay.

“Tomorrow I'm expecting a tough match. It's going to be one of the best players. He's very fit. He's up there with the good players. I know that I have to play at my highest level, perhaps similar to today or even better,” said Nadal. “I have to hit with my forehand stronger. I think my backhand was good, and my forehand was there. I think I have some margin to do it even better tomorrow, to step forward. Hopefully, I will make it to the next round. Tomorrow is a day I have to be ready and give my 100%.”