(CNN) -- Rafael Nadal won his first European clay title of the season and 27th Masters tournament victory of his career at the Madrid Open after his opponent Kei Nishikori was forced to retire through injury. Nadal had won seven straight games to lead 3-0 in the third set when the match was halted having lost the first set 6-2 and come from a break down to win the second 6-4. Nishikori had struggled with a back spasm in Saturday's dramatic semifinal victory over Nadal's fellow Spaniard, David Ferrer, and the injury returned to haunt him on Sunday. Although disappointed to lose his first Masters final in in such an unfortunate manner, the Japanese can take comfort from his performances this week which will see him break into the world top 10 for the first time when the latest rankings are released Monday.
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Rafael Nadal wins Madrid Open after Kei Nishikori retires in third set
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Victory is Nadal's 27th Masters tournament win in trophy laden career
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Nishikori will break into world's top 10 for first time on Monday
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