Spanish teenager Rafael Nadal set a new record for consecutive clay-court wins with a 6-2 7-5 6-1 win over Robin Soderling at the French Open.
Nadal's 54th straight victory broke the record set by Argentina's Guillermo Vilas in 1977.
The 19-year-old strolled through the first set but was a break down in the second before fighting back.
Soderling crumbled in the third set to hand defending champion Nadal a place in the second round.
The Mallorcan second seed received an award from Vilas for his special feat, which confirms his position among the greats of clay court tennis.
But Vilas, 53, said earlier in the day: 'First of all, Nadal's performance is spanning over two years, which is not the same.
'Then, I have the feeling he added easy tournaments on his schedule just for that purpose.'
Nevertheless, Nadal is the real deal on clay and, despite being seeded number two, is favourite to win a second successive French title.
Meanwhile, Britain's Greg Rusedski lost in four sets to Paul Capdeville, his fifth successive defeat in the French Open.
Capdeville looked more comfortable in windy conditions to triumph 6-3 6-1 4-6 7-6 (9-7).
Chilean Capdeville is ranked outside the top 100 in the world but he never looked like giving Rusedski a first win at Roland Garros since 2001.
Earlier in the day, Kim Clijsters survived a second set scare to beat Virginie Razzano 6-0 7-6 (7-4), while Venus Williams beat Sybille Bammer 6-4 6-3.
© 2006 Adfero Ltd.
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