Rafael Nadal, absent from the courts for almost a year due to physical problems, made a rapid return this Tuesday by beating the Austrian Dominic Thiem in two sets, 7-5 and 6-1, in the first round of the Brisbane tournament, in Australia. At 37 years old and after two hip operations which have prevented him from playing from January 2023, also casting doubt on his continuity on the circuit, the current number 672 in the ranking has had brilliant moments and has not given his rival any choice , number 98 in the rankings. ATP and who became N.3.
In what Nadal himself defined as “probably” his last active year, Manacori resolved his match in one hour and 29 minutes of play, obtaining his 1,069th career victory.
This makes him the fourth tennis player in history with the most victories, after breaking the tie with the Czech Ivan Lendl.
Ahead of him is only the American Jimmy Connors (1,274), the Swiss Roger Federer (1,251) and the Serbian Novak Djokovic (1,089), the only one together with Nadal still active.
“Honestly, today is an emotional and important day for me, after probably one of the most difficult years of my career, without a doubt,” Nadal said in the courtside interview.
“I had the opportunity to overcome that and play in front of an incredible crowd and play, I think, at a very positive level,” he added.
Anyone who has not followed tennis news over the past year would not have guessed that Nadal had not played since his second-round defeat to American Mackenzie McDonald at the Australian Open on January 18 last year.
After a balanced first set, resolved with a break for the Spaniard in the game in which Thiem served to force the tie-break, Nadal raised his tennis level in the second set and decided the match with two breaks.
The Spaniard was very solid on serve, without allowing a single break opportunity and with a percentage of points won on serve of 87%, also playing very brilliant tennis at times.
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Source: Clarin
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