Nadal begins comeback in devastating style, defeating Thiem in straight sets

Former world No 1 Rafael Nadal has begun his comeback to tennis in style, defeating Austrian Dominic Thiem 7-5, 6-1 in the opening round of the Brisbane International on Tuesday.

The Spaniard looked like he’d never left the tennis court despite missing the last 12 months of action due to a hip injury. With 12 winners and only three unforced errors, Nadal produced a level of tennis that few expected to see in his first match back.

But it wasn’t just his clean ball-striking that caught the eye. The 22-time Grand Slam champion appeared confident in his movement on the court, chasing down dropshots, sliding into forehands and pivoting rapidly to change direction in baseline rallies.

“I missed feeling healthy, being competitive,” an emotional Nadal said on-court shortly after the victory. “I can’t thank everyone enough. I’m excited to be back again tomorrow.”

Fans treated to first set of the highest calibre 

Entering the court to begin the night session in Brisbane, Nadal received the kind of applause usually reserved for players walking out to contest a Grand Slam final.

Given Nadal and Thiem have twice faced each other in the Roland-Garros final, one would have been forgiven for forgetting this was just a first round match between a wildcard and qualifier.

Both players produced a high standard of tennis immediately, exchanging blows from the baseline and ripping their fair share of winners. While neither was giving any ground, it was Nadal who seemed the more likely to break, courtesy of his rock solid serving – only three points lost across the first set on serve.

The opportunity came in the 12th game, where Nadal knocked on the door of Thiem’s serve at 6-5 in true champion style. It took him four attempts, but Nadal finally received the answer he was looking for, claiming the set 7-5 after 56 minutes.

With 19 winners and only five unforced errors between them, Thiem and Nadal were delivering exactly what the packed Brisbane crowd had hoped for.

Foot on the throat, Nadal powers through second set

With a taste of blood, Nadal was in full swing in the second set. The Spaniard broke Thiem immediately, continuing his impressive level and racing out to a 3-0 lead.

The Austrian clawed his way back with a service hold, but it was a brief respite as Nadal soon broke Thiem again.

With the match clock nearing an hour and a half, Nadal brought up two match points at 5-1 in the second set. The 37-year-old required just the one, pumping his fist in joy after putting away a netcord to win his first match in almost a year.

“Today is honestly an emotional and important day for me after probably one of the toughest years of my tennis career without a doubt,” said Nadal on-court after the match, before going on to confess that he doesn’t “have a real test about how the level was” because he’s “been too long outside.”

Next up, Nadal will play the winner of the match between Russian Aslan Karatsev, the No 8 seed, and Australian wildcard Jason Kubler.

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