Madrid Open

Nadal secures fourth Madrid crown

ESPN staff

May 11, 2014

Rafael Nadal bounced back to win his second clay title this year - and fourth in Madrid © Getty Images

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Rafael Nadal won his fourth Madrid Open title on Sunday after Kei Nishikori was forced to withdraw with an injury when trailing 2-6 6-4 3-0 in the final.

Nishikori's powerful groundstrokes helped him win the first set against the top-ranked Nadal, who struggled to find a way to counter his Japanese opponent.

However, Nadal slowly clawed back into the match at the Magic Box and broke twice in the second set to even the match.

But Nishikori was in obvious discomfort in the third and received treatment on his lower back during a medical timeout before eventually retiring.

Nadal recovered from two recent quarter-final losses on clay to win his second title on the surface this year and become the first player in ATP history to win four Madrid titles.

Maria Sharapova, meanwhile, secured her first Madrid title with victory against Simona Halep in the women's draw.

This article originally appeared on ESPN.com