It was D-day and H-hour. After nearly a year out due to injury, Rafa Nadal returned to the court on Tuesday to give himself one last chance which he always refused to give up.
He faced fellow veteran, Dominic Thiem, in the first round of the Brisbane tournament.. The Austrian is also in the process of recovering after going through real hell with injuries, which made the game even more special.
This is the sixteenth head-to-head between the two, with a balance of nine victories for the Spaniard and six for the Austrian, although the last two, the most recent, fell on Thiem’s side.
The beginning was a trial and error on the part of both. The service is very solid and pace up game by game, they both kept the tie until 5-5, to score before and after.
In the eleventh game Nadal comfortably won his serve again, passing all the pressure to his experienced rival. And there we saw the usual Rafa.
Aggressive and almost flawless, The former number 1 went up another gear to push Thiem to the limitwho didn’t have to face any burning balls until then.
Nadal didn’t take advantage of the first set point when he dropped the ball into the net. Neither was the second, which Thiem saved with a great serve who had a difficult return and where he pulled through a wonderful subsequent shot.
The Austrian made a double fault and it led to a third set point for the Spaniard who escaped with another good serve.. But in the fourth Nadal did not disappoint. In a passing after an exchange. The Balearic Islander did not forgive him as he made his mark after 56 minutes of play.
After a short visit to the locker room to change clothes, Rafa returned to the court with one idea in mind: don’t let his guard down and keep the game from getting complicated.
And boy did he achieve it. The second set started on a higher level and, moreover, this time he found the ‘collaboration’ of a Thiem who felt an emotional blow and began to give more facilities.
The initial 3-0 made it clear that Nadal would not give any options heading into the round of 16, and the script continues to be written along those lines.
Hard on serve, the Spaniard searched for more and earned a second break in the sixth game to make it 5-1 he finished at will with a new service game which allowed him to close his dream comeback in style.
A 7-5, 6-1 in just an hour and a half allowing him to get to the best possible conditions for his round of 16 matches, where He will face Australian Jason Kubler, who defeated Russian Aslan Karatsev 4-6, 7-6(4) and abandonment.
“Today is an emotional and important day for me. After one of the hardest years of my career, I had the opportunity to come back after a year and play in front of an incredible crowd. I think on a very positive level… it’s something that makes us proud. For the entire team, the family that was there every day of the last year,” declared the champion of 22 Grand Slam titles on the court after the match.
Nadal even joked with the Australian television journalist when he reminded him of that He just surpassed Ivan Lendl for fourth place in the ranking of tennis players with the most wins at all times.
“As you can imagine, today is not a day where I know this statistic. I’ve had enough work to concentrate and get back on the court and remember how to play in a professional match” he commented with a laugh before having a detailed discussion with his rival.
“I know Dominic also went through some tough times with injuries. I’m happy to see him on the court. I wish you all the best for the season” concluded an excited Nadal who went to the locker room with a huge ovation.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Robert Maynard, and I am a passionate journalist with experience in sports writing. For the last few years, I have been writing for Today Times Live. My main focus has been on sports-related stories and features. With my strong background in journalism and extensive knowledge of the industry, I am able to provide readers with well-crafted pieces that are both informative and engaging.
