Rafael Nadal fended off a tough challenge from James Blake to advance to the quarter-finals of the China Open on Thursday, as Serena Williams was knocked out of the WTA/ATP event in a third set tiebreak.

Nadal, the top seed, and Blake thrilled the crowd on centre court at the Beijing Olympics tennis venue for nearly two-and-a-half hours before the Spanish World No 2 notched up the win, 7-5, 6-7 (4/7), 6-3.

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Rafael Nadal