Nadal thrives, Del Potro beaten in scorching Melbourne

Rafael Nadal of Spain celebrates defeating Thanasi Kokkinakis of Australia in their men's singles match at the Australian Open 2014 tennis tournament in Melbourne January 16, 2014. REUTERS/David Gray

MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Rafa Nadal swept into the Australian Open third round under the Rod Laver Arena roof on Thursday but Juan Martin Del Potro was sent packing as sweltering temperatures, lightning and rain caused chaos on the outside courts.

Fifth seed Del Potro, whose match was shunted back to the late evening by the disruptions, was the first major casualty of the men's draw in the early hours of Friday morning when he lost 4-6 6-3 5-7 6-4 7-5 to 62nd ranked Spaniard Roberto Bautista.