<p class="title">Rafael Nadal and Dominic Thiem advanced into the third round of the ATP Montreal Masters, with Thiem achieving a personal best in Canada.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Top-seeded holder Nadal suffered through a two-hour rain interruption before dismissing Britain's Daniel Evans 7-6 (8/6), 6-4 on Wednesday.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Austrian second seed Thiem, who claimed a clay title at the weekend at home in Kitzbuehel before crossing the Atlantic, won his first match in Canada after five losses, defeating home hero Denis Shapovalov 6-4, 3-6, 6-3.</p>.<p class="bodytext">With weather forecasts dicey for the next few days, the Spanish top seed got a taste of the conditions he might face as the 18-time Grand Slam champion defends his Canadian title.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"Today, the main thing was win. I've been playing and practising more or less well. Now is the moment to compete," Nadal said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"Today I competed enough well to be through. Tomorrow is another challenge." That test will be against Argentina's Guido Pella, who beat Radu Albot 6-3, 2-6, 7-6 (7/2).</p>.<p class="bodytext">Nadal is seeking his third title of the season and now stands 38-6 in 2019. He was playing for the first time since losing a Wimbledon semi-final to Roger Federer a month ago.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Thiem was relieved to have broken his duck in Canada by finally winning a match.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"It's a great feeling. It's not only the first match win here, but also against a great player," he said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"The court is pretty fast. It was a huge transition from clay to here.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"I'm very happy with the way I served. I'm also happy that I could swing free some flat serves again." Thiem on Thursday faces 2014 US Open champion Marin Cilic, who defeated Australian John Millman 6-3, 6-4.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Nadal said that re-starting on cement after a long post-Wimbledon pause takes some adjustment.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"This is just the first day, first matches are always tough the first time on hardcourt," he said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"After Wimbledon always the mind goes down a little bit. I had a long clay court season, then grass, so you don't relax.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"When you finish Wimbledon, your body loses a little bit that tension, so it needs little bit of time to recover." Nadal advanced after two hours of play but because of rain it took almost four and a half hours after the first ball was struck.</p>.<p class="bodytext"><strong>Raonic, Tsitsipas out</strong></p>.<p class="bodytext">8-year-old fellow Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime a 6-3, 3-6 win.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Raonic, a 2013 finalist here, was unable to go on after winning the second set to square the contest.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Auger-Aliassime got a walkover win against his compatriot last June on grass in Stuttgart when Raonic suffered a back injury.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The senior Canadian beat the youngster in spring, 2018 in Indian Wells in their only completed match.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Greek star Stefanos Tsitsipas, last year's Canada runner-up, was dumped out 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 by Poland's Hubert Hurkacz, whom the world number five had defeated in three prior matches.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Japan's fifth seed Kei Nishikori was unable to profit from a match point, losing in 3 hours nine minutes to Frenchman Richard Gasquet.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Spain's 10th seed Robert Bautista Agut advanced while number 12 John Isner was sent out in straight sets.</p>
<p class="title">Rafael Nadal and Dominic Thiem advanced into the third round of the ATP Montreal Masters, with Thiem achieving a personal best in Canada.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Top-seeded holder Nadal suffered through a two-hour rain interruption before dismissing Britain's Daniel Evans 7-6 (8/6), 6-4 on Wednesday.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Austrian second seed Thiem, who claimed a clay title at the weekend at home in Kitzbuehel before crossing the Atlantic, won his first match in Canada after five losses, defeating home hero Denis Shapovalov 6-4, 3-6, 6-3.</p>.<p class="bodytext">With weather forecasts dicey for the next few days, the Spanish top seed got a taste of the conditions he might face as the 18-time Grand Slam champion defends his Canadian title.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"Today, the main thing was win. I've been playing and practising more or less well. Now is the moment to compete," Nadal said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"Today I competed enough well to be through. Tomorrow is another challenge." That test will be against Argentina's Guido Pella, who beat Radu Albot 6-3, 2-6, 7-6 (7/2).</p>.<p class="bodytext">Nadal is seeking his third title of the season and now stands 38-6 in 2019. He was playing for the first time since losing a Wimbledon semi-final to Roger Federer a month ago.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Thiem was relieved to have broken his duck in Canada by finally winning a match.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"It's a great feeling. It's not only the first match win here, but also against a great player," he said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"The court is pretty fast. It was a huge transition from clay to here.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"I'm very happy with the way I served. I'm also happy that I could swing free some flat serves again." Thiem on Thursday faces 2014 US Open champion Marin Cilic, who defeated Australian John Millman 6-3, 6-4.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Nadal said that re-starting on cement after a long post-Wimbledon pause takes some adjustment.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"This is just the first day, first matches are always tough the first time on hardcourt," he said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"After Wimbledon always the mind goes down a little bit. I had a long clay court season, then grass, so you don't relax.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"When you finish Wimbledon, your body loses a little bit that tension, so it needs little bit of time to recover." Nadal advanced after two hours of play but because of rain it took almost four and a half hours after the first ball was struck.</p>.<p class="bodytext"><strong>Raonic, Tsitsipas out</strong></p>.<p class="bodytext">8-year-old fellow Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime a 6-3, 3-6 win.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Raonic, a 2013 finalist here, was unable to go on after winning the second set to square the contest.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Auger-Aliassime got a walkover win against his compatriot last June on grass in Stuttgart when Raonic suffered a back injury.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The senior Canadian beat the youngster in spring, 2018 in Indian Wells in their only completed match.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Greek star Stefanos Tsitsipas, last year's Canada runner-up, was dumped out 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 by Poland's Hubert Hurkacz, whom the world number five had defeated in three prior matches.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Japan's fifth seed Kei Nishikori was unable to profit from a match point, losing in 3 hours nine minutes to Frenchman Richard Gasquet.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Spain's 10th seed Robert Bautista Agut advanced while number 12 John Isner was sent out in straight sets.</p>