Rafael Nadal rebounded from an early break to beat Marcel Granollers 6-3 6-2 Wednesday, advancing to the third round of the Barcelona Open.

Nadal lost his serve to start the match but recovered in the following game of his opening match at the clay-court tournament.

“He started very aggressively, getting to every ball, taking the initiative,” Nadal said.

“It was very important to break him right back. After that, everything was a bit easier.”

The top-seeded Nadal had 16 break points, converting four of them.

He saved three break points against the 50th-ranked Granollers.

Seeking his ninth title at the Barcelona Open, Nadal will next play wild-card entry Albert Montanes, the 104th-ranked Spaniard who defeated 14th-seeded Joao Sousa of Portugal 6-1 6-3.

Nadal has won all his three matches against Montanes, who is coming off a semifinal appearance in Morocco.

Nadal, ranked fifth in the world, won the Monte Carlo Masters last week for his first title of the year.

Two-time Barcelona Open champion Kei Nishikori advanced to the third round by beating Thiemo de Bakker 6-4 6-2. He broke the Dutchman’s serve three times.

“The conditions were tough for both of us because of the wind,” said the second-seeded Nishikori, who will next play 33rd-ranked Jeremy Chardy of France.

“But I played a solid match.”

Nishikori is trying to become the third player to win three consecutive titles at the Barcelona Open, joining Mats Wilander and Nadal. The 26-year-old Japanese player has won 11 straight matches at the tournament.

Also, eighth-seeded Viktor Troicki of Serbia beat Hungarian qualifier Marton Fucsovics 6-4 1-6 6-0 and 12th-seeded Fabio Fognini of Italy defeated Mikhail Youzhny of Russia 3-6 6-0 6-1.

Alexander Zverev of Germany beat 15th-seeded Thomaz Bellucci of Brazil 6-3 7-6 (7-3) 7-5 and 10th-seeded Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany eased to a 6-2 6-1 victory over Pablo Carreno Busta of Spain.