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Italian Open: Rafael Nadal beats Novak Djokovic 6-0 4-6 6-1 in final

Rafael Nadal claimed his first title of the year after defeating world number one Novak Djokovic 6-0 4-6 6-1 in the Italian Open final in Rome.

The Spaniard raced through the opener in 39 minutes, the first 6-0 between the great rivals in 141 previous sets.

Djokovic battled back, but in the Rome sunshine Nadal sealed his ninth Italian Open title in two hours, 25 minutes.

It was his 81st tournament win and it takes him 34-33 ahead of Djokovic in Masters 1,000 Series titles.

Since 2005, Nadal has won at least one of the nine Masters 1,000 events in a season every year except 2015.