Getting a second lease on life can be liberating. Both Rafael Nadal and Kei Nishikori were in this position heading into their quarterfinal at the BNP Paribas Open. Each man had saved a match point in the previous round against Alexander Zverev and John Isner, respectively. Nadal saw Zverev net a routine volley that was otherwise headed for the open court. Nishikori tapped a 76-mph second serve that Isner failed to dispatch with the disdain that it deserved. No doubt breathing a sigh of relief, each man denied his opponent any further chances. The result was the blockbuster quarterfinal projected but far from guaranteed when the tournament began.

Until last year, this matchup had been dominated by Nadal, whose physicality inexorably wore down Nishikori on all surfaces. After the Spaniard won their first seven meetings, only two or three of which were suspenseful, Nishikori flipped the script in a commanding win at the Rogers Cup last summer. This setback marked just one symptom of the malaise that infected Nadal’s game throughout most of 2015 and that appeared to trickle into 2016. But the Zverev comeback seemed to have turned a page, signaling a more confident, resilient Rafa than we had seen in many months. Meanwhile, Nishikori had shown signs of vulnerability earlier this season, claiming a small title in Memphis but also dropping matches to Bernard Tomic and Sam Querrey.

Since neither man tends to serve rockets, and the slow surface at Indian Wells favors wars of attrition, spectators could anticipate a battle of long, grueling baseline exchanges. The opening six-minute game lived up to those expectations. What did surprise was Nadal’s ability to rely on his first serve on big points, since that shot had contributed little to his game during his recent struggles. He landed 35 of his first 38 first serves and finished the match at a rate of nearly 90 percent. While he struck just two aces and few serves over 110 miles per hour, his ability to consistently deliver that shot allowed him to maintain the rhythm from the baseline that his game requires.

Determined to set the tone from the outset, Nishikori fearlessly flattened out his forehand and aimed for the lines whenever he was able to maneuver his opponent out of position. The Japanese star would earn seven break points in Nadal’s first three service games, at least two in each. In retrospect, his ability to convert only one of those would play a crucial role in the match. Nishikori surged out to a 3-1 lead after that conversion, but his failure to punish Nadal for falling behind 15-40 in the next game would come back to haunt him. A risky but correct challenge by the Spaniard set up the first break point on his opponent’s serve. In the ensuing rally, Nadal confidently swung through his two-handed backhand to set up a weak reply and level the proceedings.

A trio of uneventful service holds took the first set to 5-4. At this stage, Nishikori felt some pressure for arguably the first time in the match. He netted a pair of tentative forehands. Two points from the set, Nadal brought the crowd to its feet with a thunderous forehand down the line. He converted the first of the two resulting set points after an entertaining exchange with both men at the net.

This was a deflating finish to the first set for Nishikori, who had appeared poised to run away with it midway through. His game reflected his sagging fortunes early in the second set, when he muffed a routine volley to fall behind an early break. Nadal has always shown himself to be an outstanding momentum player, pouncing on opportunities that dispirited opponents offer him. However, one more plot twist lay ahead. Just like Nishikori in the first set, Nadal failed to convert either of two chances for an insurance break as the Japanese star stayed within range. He then abruptly dropped four straight points from 4-2 30-0 to put the match back on serve.

At this stage, few would have faulted Nadal for feeling as though he should have been in the locker room already. Yet his body language still emanated confidence, while Nishikori looked too weary to mount a comeback from the brink of defeat. He missed several of his first serves in the next game and dumped a backhand in the net to surrender the decisive break. Although Nadal would fall behind when serving for the match, a pinpoint ace started a run of four straight points that concluded with a victory-sealing forehand winner. With another highly physical encounter on the horizon tomorrow, he would have felt satisfied to avoid an exhausting battle by advancing 6-4 6-3 in 93 minutes.

Indian Wells always has been a friendly tournament to Nadal, who has reached more semifinals there than at any other event away from his beloved clay. When he is freely swinging through his forehand and covering the court as seamlessly as he did in his prime, the slow speed of the surface makes it difficult to hit through him. Nadal also received enthusiastic crowd support throughout the match, the fans seeming determined to invigorate his spirits. As he did when he fell behind early in his previous encounter, he showed impressive poise in battling back to take control of the match. Likely ahead for the three-time champion in the desert is world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, who entered the court shortly after Nadal left to face Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.