Thinner on high, however nonetheless thunderous in his depth, Rafael Nadal returned to the singles courtroom by thumping former US Open champion Dominic Thiem in a straight-sets win that may echo across the locker-room.
As Nadal performed his first critical match since Jan 18, 2023, all of the logos have been there: the bazooka of a forehand, the bustling motion and the fragile fingers on the internet. Even his backhand – usually his weakest go well with – was in punishing type as he pummelled Thiem from the baseline.
Now we have been listening to optimistic whispers emanating from the Nadal camp for a while. But it was nonetheless thrilling for tennis followers to see him taking part in with such a dominant cocktail of readability, contact and violence.
If this primary match proves to be a dependable information, we aren’t taking a look at a person performing a farewell tour (which was very a lot the tenor of Nadal’s most up-to-date press convention in Might). We’re taking a look at a person who can compete for titles.
What stays to be seen, nevertheless, is whether or not Nadal’s 37-year-old physique can address repeated stress, day after day and week after week. Whereas he could have appeared exceptionally robust on this one-off exhibiting, his very ascendancy meant that he solely wanted 89 minutes to finish the job.
“In the present day is an emotional and vital day for me,” stated Nadal in his on-court interview on the Brisbane Worldwide. “I feel that to play at a really optimistic stage, to be the primary day, is one thing that in all probability make us really feel proud. To myself, to all of the staff and to household who’ve been there each single day over the last 12 months.”
Nadal’s first level after his lay-off (which had been occasioned by a hip harm) was an ideal demonstration of intent. He served, positioned his first spin-heavy forehand to his opponent’s backhand as regular, after which walloped a clear forehand winner into the open courtroom.
Even beneath heavy fireplace, Thiem provided stout resistance within the first set, matching Nadal stroke for stroke till the twelfth sport. However as soon as that first break arrived – and likewise concluded the primary set – his self-belief appeared to wilt.
A drop in work-rate from Thiem allowed Nadal to reel off 5 straight video games and transfer out to a 3-0 lead within the second set. The competition was now not compelling, however Nadal’s statistics – 12 winners and simply three unforced errors throughout the match – present that he remained fully dialled-in.
“I missed being wholesome, I missed feeling myself aggressive,” stated Nadal, who will face world No 102 Jason Kubler within the subsequent spherical. However he shrugged when instructed that his early exchanges with Thiem had resembled a second-week match at a significant. “I don’t have an actual check about how the extent was,” he replied, in usually understated trend. “I’ve been too lengthy outdoors.”
Nadal additionally appeared uninterested – as he often is – within the statistics surrounding his 1,069th victory on the tour, even supposing it moved him forward of Ivan Lendl into fourth place on the all-time checklist. On this proof, although, he shall be including a lot extra scalps to that tally.