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Paris, Nov. 5 (IANS): Twenty-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal has added yet another feather to his already illustrious cap by becoming only the fourth tennis player to register 1000 Open Era single wins.
On Wednesday, Nadal defeated Feliciano Lopez 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4 to reach the third round of the ongoing Paris Masters.
The Spaniard is the fourth player to reach the milestone in the Open Era, joining Jimmy Connors (1,274-283), Roger Federer (1,242-271) and Ivan Lendl (1,068-242). The 34-year-old leads all players in the Open Era with an 83.3 winning per cent (1,000-201).
"(Winning 1,000 matches) means that I am old. That means that I played well for such a very long time, because to achieve that number is because I have been playing well for a lot of years and (that) is something that makes me feel happy," Nadal was quoted as saying by the ATP Tour website.
"I just can say thank you very much to all the people that helped me and all the people that in any moment of my life helped me to be where I am," he added.
The 13-time Roland Garros champion, who is aiming to capture his first Paris Masters title, will now face Jordan Thompson for a place in the quarter-finals. The 2007 runner-up has reached the quarter-finals or better in each of his previous seven tournament appearances.