Hot Shot: Nadal's must-watch winner part of his 88th French Open win

In his second straight match against a German qualifier named Yannick, two-time defending French Open champion Rafael Nadal cruised past Yannick Maden, 6-1, 6-2, 6-4, to secure a third-round spot on Wednesday.

Nadal was in control throughout the match, though he was broken in consecutive service games in the third set. Despite that lapse in concentration, this result was never in doubt.

"I think it was, yeah, a good match for the first two sets," Nadal said. "Not unbelievable, but, you know, 6-1, 6-2, with positive feelings.

"Then in the third, being honest, I think I lost a little bit concentration and intensity. And then all the match became difficult. That's all. No, no, I had opportunities with 1-All I think I had Love-30, then I had the break in 3-2. He [broke] me back. Then I [broke] again, 40-15. A game that I made two double faults for 5-3. So he break me back."

Nadal's damaging forehand was on point, finding angles from the back of the court and wherever else Rafa roamed. En route to his victory, the Spaniard tracked down a drop shot, hitting a disguised flick shot two shots later. (Watch above)

"Sometimes watching Nadal is like watching a video game," said two-time French Open champion Jim Courier after the brilliant point. "And of course in this situation, that video game would have to be called Maden 2019."

Nadal is bidding for a record 12th tournament title and 18th Grand Slam trophy. Since losing to Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Madrid semifinals earlier this month, the No. 2 seed has been on cruise control, surrendering just one set in Rome and, thus far, at Roland Garros (it was to Novak Djokovic in the Rome final). On his way to the Italian Open title, Nadal scored four bagel sets, including one against the world No. 1.

Next up for Nadal is No. 27 seed David Goffin, who eliminated Miomir Kecmanović, 6-2, 6-4, 6-3. Nadal has won all three of their prior meetings on clay in straight sets; Goffin won their round-robin encounter at the ATP Finals two years ago to secure his first victory over Nadal.

"[Goffin] is a very complex player," Nadal said. He has all the shots. He's a player who have an amazing career, and we practiced a lot of times. We know each other well.

"He's an opponent that you need to play very well to have success against him. He is quick. He has very good angles. Gonna be, being honest, a big challenge to be in the third round. Here we are. I gonna try my best to be ready for it."