By Adrianna Outlaw | Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Rafael Nadal arrived in Monte Carlo seeking confidence. The eight-time Monte Carlo champion delivered command in his return to red clay today.

Striking with authority, Nadal reeled off 10 of the last 11 games overwhelming French wild card Lucas Pouille, 6-2, 6-1, in an impressive 68-minute rout.

Video: Nadal Motivated, But Says He's Not Monte-Carlo Favorite

Nadal won 25 of 28 points played on his first serve and did not face a break point in the match.

The third-seeded Spaniard raised his career record to 51-3 in the Principality in advancing to a round of 16 clash with either 15th-seeded John Isner or Viktor Troicki.

Playing his first clay-court match since beating Richard Gasquet to clinch Switzerland's first Davis Cup championship last November, Roger Federer needed just 54 minutes to dismantle Jeremy Chardy, 6-2, 6-1. The second-seeded Federer tripled Chardy's winner output (19 to 5) and won nine of 12 trips to net. Federer will play either Alexandr Dolgopolov or Gael Monfils in the round of 16.

Nadal played clean tennis throughout. Hitting his forehand with ambition, Nadal committed just five unforced errors compared to 31 for his opponent, who swept talented Austrian Dominic Thiem in the opening round.

Hit with a time violation warning by chair umpire Fergus Murphy in the third game, Nadal held at 30 for a 2-1 lead, punctuating it with a wry smile toward the chair.

When a Pouille serve that landed long in the ensuing game was ruled good, Nadal joked to Murphy "Can I give you a warning?"

Throwing down a love hold for 3-2, Nadal began dialing in his ground strokes, winning eight of nine points to seize control. He drilled a forehand down the line to draw the error, breaking for 4-2.

Hooking a crackling forehand down the line for set point, Nadal hit a heavier topspin backhand down the opposite sideline that rattled the 21-year-old Frenchman's racquet, as he broke for the second time to snatch the the opening set.

The forehand down the line can be a barometer of Nadal's confidence. When he's hitting that shot with conviction, he is very tough to beat. Pouille let the Spaniard's drive down the line go by and paid the price when it landed in as Nadal broke for a 3-1 second-set lead.

Nadal closed the match with another forehand down the line — his 13th winner of the day — to secure his spot in the round of 16.

Defending champion Stan Wawrinka dismissed Juan Monaco, 6-1, 6-4, raising his 2015 record to 17-4. The seventh-seeded Swiss will face Grigor Dimitrov next. The ninth-seeded Dimitrov defeated Fabio Fognini, 6-3, 6-4.

Big-hitting Tomas Berdych beat Sergiy Stakhovsky, 6-4, 7-6 (2). The sixth-seeded Czech will play Roberto Bautista Agut for a quarterfinal spot. The 12th-seeded Spaniard edged Philipp Kohlschreiber, 6-7 (3), 6-3, 7-6 (4) in two hours, 40 minutes.

In an all-Spanish match, 16th-seeded Tommy Robredo thrashed Marcel Granollers, 6-1, 6-1. Gilles Simon was a 6-4, 7-5 victory over Benoit Paire in an all-French clash. Simon will play No. 5 seed David Ferrer next.