Nadal warned by Klizan ahead of Barcelona Open clash

The world No. 1 had struggled to reach his best form in the Catalonian competition but he cranked through the gears against his fellow Spaniard.

Nadal now faces Novak Djokovic's conqueror Martin Kilzan on Friday — but the Slovenian is not afraid of coming up against the best player in the world.

It has been almost a year since Nadal has even dropped a set on clay as he won his 39th and 40th consecutive sets against Garcia Lopez.

But Klizan remains confident of getting a result - and he has won one of his previous three battles against the 'King of Clay'.

"Nadal seems to be in a great form, but he is also human, nobody is unbeatable," Klizan said.

"He is a legend. Win or lose, to face him in a quarter-final is to feel proud."

Klizan had to come through a gruelling qualifying process to participate in the Barcelona Open, while Nadal was handed a bye into the second round.

"I came from the previous phase and I had to play a lot of matches," Klizan added.

"In the first round I played almost three hours.

"Luckily I have not been on track so much today, so I can rest and prepare well for tomorrow (Friday)."