World No.1 Rafael Nadal overcame some spirited play from underdog Hugo Dellien to move into the second round of the Australian Open on Tuesday.
The former champion rallied to a 6-2, 6-3, 6-0, victory against the world No.73. Who is the only player from Bolivia to have a top 500 ranking at present. Despite the straightforward score, Nadal was at times made to work hard for victory due to some big hitting coming from across the court, but it was not consistent enough to derail the Spaniard as he dropped serve twice in the match.
“For me it is a positive start. What you want in the first round (of a grand slam) is to win and to do it in straight sets is even better.” Nadal said during his on-court interview.
“I’m happy and excited to be back here in Melbourne.”
Seeking only his second title in Melbourne and first in a decade, the top seed blasted 38 winners to 21 unforced errors in his latest encounter on the Rod Laver Arena. Nadal also had the edge when it came to serve as he won 70% of his first service points and 59% of his second. Converting eight out of his 18 break point opportunities.
Nadal’s form on the court elevated as the match progressed. After manoeuvring his way through the first two sets against Dellien, he switched up to another level in the third. It was during the decider where he dropped only six points behind serve and broke three consecutive times en route to victory. Clinching the win with the help of a clean forehand winner
“It was a tough first five games for me. I was leading 5-0, but he had a lot of chances to win games during that tough time.” He reflected after.
“He’s (Dellien) a fighter. He has a great story behind him. He is playing at a very high level and I wish him all the best for the rest of the season.”
The 32-year-old enters this year’s tournament with plenty of match practice following his run to the final of the inaugural ATP Earlier this month. At the tournament Nadal played a total of eight matches (including two doubles) and won six of them. Although he is not phased by the busy start to 2020 for him.
“There has not been much time between seasons this year. I finished late (last year) with the Davis Cup and then started (2020) with a demanding competition at the ATP Cup,’ he admits.
“But I’m happy. I’ve started to take it a bit slow at the end of last week and then I started to increase my intensity on the practice court.”
Nadal has now won his first round match at the Australian Open in 14 out of his 15 appearances. The only exception was in 2016. He has now won 62 main draw matches at the tournament since his debut back in 2004.
Up next for the top seed will be a meeting with either Portugal’s Joao Sousa or Argentina’s Federico Delbonis. He currently leads both player’s 3-0 in their head-to-head and is yet to drop a set against them.
