Nadal claims eighth Barcelona Open title

Rafael Nadal won his eighth Barcelona Open title in nine years with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over fellow Spaniard and fourth seed Nicolas Almagro on Sunday.

The World No 5 and second seed survived a whirlwind start from Almagro, who broke his first two service games in cloudy, drizzly conditions on the clay of the Real Club de Tenis.

Nadal battled back with three breaks of serve to take the first set and ran away with it in the second, to notch a 10th straight victory over his compatriot.

The French Open champion's 39th consecutive win in Barcelona secured his fourth title of the year since returning from a seven-month injury lay-off.

Photograph: David Ramos/Getty Images