Brisbane International: Rafael Nadal makes an entrance

Brisbane, January 2

Rafael Nadal showed no signs of rust from his year off the tour, winning his return match over former No. 3-ranked Dominic Thiem 7-5 6-1 at the Brisbane International today.

The 22-time Major winner hadn’t played a singles match at the elite level since a second-round exit at the Australian Open last January.

He didn’t show it. The 37-year-old Nadal made just six unforced errors and dropped only three points on his serve in the first set. He won eight of the last nine games to clinch victory in 89 minutes.

“Today is honestly an emotional and important day for me,” said Nadal, who’s world No. 672 and playing on a wildcard in Brisbane. “It was a very positive level (for) the first day.” — AP  

United Cup: Djokovic’s wrist issue no problem

Perth: Novak Djokovic received treatment for a wrist issue during his 6-1 6-7(3) 6-1 win over Jiri Lehecka at the United Cup as Serbia squeezed past the Czech Republic 2-1 to reach the quarterfinals. Djokovic, gearing up for a tilt at a record-extending 11th Australian Open title this month, appeared to be bothered by his right wrist in practice and occasionally grimaced in the opening set. “(The injury) happened in the warm-up today before the match. I basically got constant treatment before the match, during the match, after the match,” the 36-year-old said. Reuters