Former world No 1 Rafael Nadal enjoyed an ideal start to his first Brisbane International on Tuesday, storming into the second round with an easy win over Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov.
Nadal, 30, took only 74 minutes to see off Dolgopolov 6-3, 6-3 and book a second-round clash with Germany’s Mischa Zverev, who earlier outclassed 17-year-old Australian qualifier Alex De Minaur 6-3, 6-3.
Dolgopolov had beaten Nadal on their previous two encounters and he started well, breaking the Spaniard’s second service game.
But Nadal broke straight back then broke again to take the first set in 39 minutes. He broke once more in the second set to the delight of the packed house at Pat Rafter Arena.
“It’s tough to play against him,” Nadal said of Dolgopolov. “He plays a little bit Kamikaze, you know.
“He’s very aggressive with all the shots. It’s difficult to construct a point with him.”
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Nadal, who played the last match of the day and finished just before midnight in Australia, only arrived in Brisbane from Abu Dhabi on Monday and said he was struggling to adapt to the time difference.
“Today, at two in the afternoon I was on the bed,” he said.
“I was destroyed. I’m not sure if it’s better to play earlier or not. I think for the moment, I think it’s better for me to play later.
“I played great in Abu Dhabi [where he won the Mubadala World Championship],” he added. “I like the conditions there, and a lot of years I played well there. That’s always important for me.
“And here is an important event for me, because it’s the second event of the year and the first ATP event.”
Earlier, fifth seed Lucas Pouille recovered from 0-5 in the first set to see off fellow Frenchman Gilles Simon 7-6, 7-6 and set up a second-round clash against Britain’s Kyle Edmund.
Australian wildcard Sam Groth won his first match in the ATP main draw since July when he beat France’s Pierre-Hugues Herbert 6-3, 5-7, 7-5.
Qatar Open
Meanwhile in Doha, world No 1 Andy Murray extended his career-best winning streak on the ATP Tour to 25 as he swept past Frenchman Jeremy Chardy 6-0, 7-6 at the Qatar Open.
Olympic and Wimbledon champion Murray, bidding for a third Doha title after wins in 2008 and 2009, will play Austrian Gerald Melzer next.
He is unbeaten in regular tournament play since losing to Kei Nishikori in the US Open quarter-finals in September and won his last five tournaments of 2016 to topple Novak Djokovic from the top of the rankings.
“He didn’t start well and it’s always difficult in the first match of the year but in the second set he played extremely well and pushed me hard,” Murray said.
France’s Jo-Wilfried Tsonga had to see off a determined Andrey Kuznetsov of Russia. The world No 12 won 6-1, 4-6, 6-2.
Tsonga, who was playing his first match in Doha since taking the Qatar Open title in 2012, breezed through the opening set in just 23 minutes.
But Kuznetsov, ranked 46 in the world, broke Tsonga’s serve in the 10th game in the second to force a deciding set.
Auckland Open
In Auckland, Serena Williams ended four months on the sidelines with flashes of form in a 6-3, 6-4 win over Pauline Parmentier in the first round of the ASB Classic.
Williams, who rested various injuries after her semi-final exit at the US Open, had her match postponed by a day due to rain, but it was the wind yesterday that made it difficult to serve for the second-ranked Williams.
She took 74 minutes to beat No 69-ranked Parmentier, serving eight aces but also prolonged the match with a series of unforced errors, including four double-faults.
“You always feel rusty going out there for your first match,” Williams said. “I felt that rust, but mentally I knew how to get it back and get in there.”
World No 19 Caroline Wozniacki beat American Nicole Gibbs 6-1, 6-0 in just 50 minutes.
* Agencies
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