Dominic Thiem, of Austria, returns a shot to Sumit Nagal, of India, during the second round of the US Open tennis championships, Sept.3, 2020, in New York. (SETH WENIG / AP)

NEW YORK - Second seed Dominic Thiem celebrated his 27th birthday with a commanding 6-3 6-3 6-2 victory over India’s Sumit Nagal on Thursday to move into the third round of the US Open.

Nagal became on Tuesday the first Indian in seven years to win a singles match at Flushing Meadows

Austrian Thiem, seeking his maiden Grand Slam title, won an overwhelming 74 percent of his first serve points and fired seven aces past the inexperienced Nagal, breaking him seven times in the two-hour contest.

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Nagal became on Tuesday the first Indian in seven years to win a singles match at Flushing Meadows but the 23-year-old showed only flashes of brilliance in a one-sided clash at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Up next for Thiem, who was runner-up at the Australian Open this year, is 2014 champion Marin Cilic of Croatia who beat Slovakia’s Norbert Gombos 6-3 1-6 7-6(2) 7-5.

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