Argentine
David Nalbandian will have a chance to launch himself back in the upper echelon of men's tennis after setting up a likely meeting on Thursday with world No. 1
Rafael Nadal at the
Barcelona Open.
Nadal is moving toward a fifth straight Barcelona title, and will later today face Christophe "The Roach" Rochus of Belgium.
Nalbandian advanced to the Barcelona Open quarterfinals by defeating
Nicolas Almagro 6-3, 6-4 on Thursday. The former No. 3-ranked Nalbandian is currently outside the Top 10 at No. 15.
Radek Stepanek also reached the quarterfinals on Thursday, topping
Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland 6-4, 1-6, 7-5.
Nadal became the first man to win the Masters
Monte Carlo five times in a row, topping
Novak Djokovic in last Sunday's final. Nadal begins his attempt for a fifth consecutive
French Open title in May, and is on a 22 match win streak on clay.
