Nadal, the No. 1 seed, saved the nine break points he faced on the way to beating 16th-seeded Gael Monfils, a French crowd favorite, 6-3, 6-2.

The Spaniard is chasing his ninth tournament crown this season, and fourth ATP Masters Series overall.

Federer, the second seed, was a 6-3, 6-4 victor against unseeded Marin Cilic of Croatia.

The Swiss legend hit four service aces, won 69 percent of service points, and converted 3-of-6 break point chances.

"It wasn't like it was the best match of my life," Federer said, "but it was a solid performance."

Elsewhere, Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, the No. 13 seed, overturned third-seeded Novak Djokovic of Serbia, the reigning Australian Open champion 6-4, 1-6, 6-3; while No. 4 Andy Murray of Scotland outlasted Spain's Fernando Verdasco 6-3, 7-6 (8-6).