Emotional and important.” This is how the Spanish tennis player defined Raphael Nadal his return to the tennis courts after almost a year of absence due to injury, after a convincing victory against the Austrian Dominic Thiem in two sets (7-5 and 6-1) in the first round of the tournament Brisbane, Australia.
“Honestly, today is an emotional and important day for me, after probably one of the hardest years of my career, without a doubt,” he declared. Nadal in the interview at the foot of the track.
“I had the opportunity to overcome it and play in front of an incredible crowd and play, I think, at a very positive level,” added the winner of 22 World Cup tournaments. grand slamwhose rival in the second round will be the Australian Jason Kubler who eliminated Aslan Karatsev after the Russian abandoned with the score tied at one set.
At 37 years old and after two hip operations that prevented him from playing since January 2023, even questioning his continuity on the circuit, the now No. 672 in the ranking had moments of brilliance and gave his rival no option. , number 98 in the ATP and which became N.3.
In what one’s own Nadal described as “probably” his last year active, the Manacorí resolved his match in one hour and 29 minutes of play, achieving his 1,069th victory of his career.
This makes him the fourth tennis player in history with the most victories, after breaking a tie with the Czech Ivan Lendl.
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Ahead, he only has the American Jimmy Connors (1,274), the Swiss Roger Federer (1,251) and the Serbian Novak Djokovic (1,089), the only one along with Nadal that is still active.
“What happened on this first day makes me feel proud. For me, for my team and for my family, who was with me every day last year,” declared a Nadal excited.