There were no major upsets on Wednesday as the big boys marched into the next round of the Shanghai Rolex Masters.
Serbian Novak Djokovic made light work of Marcel Granollers of Spain, easing to a 6-2, 6-0 win, and that too after suffering an injury scare when he seemed to roll his ankle.
The match, which saw Djokovic hit 26 winners in all, keeps the Serb on course for a quarterfinal matchup with Roger Federer, who also had to overcome some trouble against Andreas Seppi. Djokovic next faces Fabio Fognini.
Federer was a break down in the first set at 3-2, before an immediate break back and later another break saw the Swiss great take the first set 6-4. The second set was a little more straightforward as an early break helped Federer to a 6-4, 6-3 win to set up a clash with Frenchman Gael Monfils in the next round.
"Just a tough combination when I got broken," a relieved Federer said after the match. "I was able to break back right away still with the used balls. Then with the ball change, I was in the match really.
"It was a big maybe shall I say 20 minutes going up a set and a break, really started to feel comfortable.
"Even though it remained tough, Seppi did a good job of hanging around. That's the kind of first round match you want in this particular situation I'm in right now."
Newly crowned world number one Nadal, who played late in the day at Shanghai, with the train also deciding to stay away, was at his effective best against the dangerous Alexandr Dolgopolov.
The Spaniard, who watched he Federer match from courtside, did not face a single break point in the whole match as he advanced to the next round in just 59 minutes with a 6-3, 6-2 win.
Nadal next faces Carlos Berlocq, who defeated John Isner, and the Spaniard will be confident of marching on ahead on Thursday as well.
There were also wins for Juan Martin Del Potro, who survived a scare against Philipp Kohlschreiber, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and David Ferrer.
"I'm really happy," said Tsonga after his straight set win over Pablo Andujar. "I played a good match. I was solid on serve. I'm trying to take the tournament step-by-step. I'm thinking about my body, trying to stay healthy, find my level, and maybe I will have a chance (to qualify for the ATP World Tour Finals in London)."
