The first time on the court since Brisbane at the beginning of the year, and on its clay after a long 680 days... And nothing has changed - Rafael Nadal opened the ATP Masters in Barcelona with a sure victory.
One of the greatest tennis players of all time did not have many problems against the 21-year-old Italian Flavio Coboli - he won 6:2, 6:3.
At the beginning of the year, Rafa played tennis after almost a year's break, but the problems with injuries quickly returned, so he gave up the performance at the first Grand Slam tournament of the season - the Australian Open.
The new break, not counting the exhibition in Las Vegas and the duel with Carlos Alcaraz, lasted until today, and then the ace who won 22 Grand Slam titles reminded why he is the "king of clay".
Koboli may not be a top player yet, but it seems that Nadal was also played by a rival with a much more famous name so that he would not have many chances.
The tennis player from Manacor played his last match on clay before in 2022, when he won Roland Garros for a record 14th time.
Alex de Minaur is waiting for him in the next round of Barcelona.
Bonus video:
