Rafael Nadal of Spain poses with the Ion Tiriac trophy after his victory over Kei Nishikori of Japan in their men's singles final match at the Madrid Open tennis tournament May 11, 2014. REUTERS/Susana Vera
MADRID (Reuters) - Rafa Nadal won an unconvincing second straight Madrid Open title after Kei Nishikori sustained a back injury when closing on victory in the second set of Sunday's final and was forced to retire early in the third.
Japan's Nishikori, the 10th seed and one of the game's rising talents, made a blistering start on Nadal's favoured clay to win the first set 6-2 and was a break up in the second and serving at 4-3 when disaster struck.
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