Nadal bursting with pride after breaking Vilas mark

PARIS (Reuters) - Rafael Nadal was bursting with pride after he broke Guillermo Vilas's record of 53 consecutive claycourt wins with a 6-2 7-5 6-1 victory over Swede Robin Soderling in the first round of the French Open on Monday.

The defending champion's win over Soderling put him at the top of the tree in men's claycourt tennis in the professional era, surpassing the Argentine's mark set in 1977.

"For me it is special because it is 54 victories," Nadal said.

"It is very difficult. Very, very difficult. A lot of tournaments, a lot of matches. It is not normal because one day you can have bad luck, anything. I am very happy for that. It is important for me to be in history."

Nadal, the second seed, is looking to become the first man since Brazilian Gustavo Kuerten in 2001 to successfully defend the French Open title.

Being so close to the record, he said, had put him under extra pressure to beat Soderling.

"I thought about this record when I started to get close, so obviously it's something that you want to go for," Nadal said.

"When you (the media) said that the record was (close), that used to frighten me. I'd never thought about the record until now.

"When I got it, I think it's quite a nice thing to have. But it was difficult. It was very difficult. That's 54 matches."

Vilas compiled his winning streak in 1977, the year he won his only French Open title and the Argentine presented him with a special trophy on court after the match.

"I never saw him play but the people tell me he was very, very tough," Nadal said of Vilas.

Vilas also put together a run of 46 consecutive wins on all surfaces. Nadal came into Paris with 17 wins on the bounce and to get near that mark, the Spaniard would need to win here, continue his winning streak through Wimbledon and well beyond.

"If I do 46 and I win Wimbledon, I might as well retire," Nadal joked.