Rafael Nadal addresses concerns about his serve after ‘very impressive’ comeback win

Ewan West
Rafael Nadal celebrates Barcelona Open 2024
Rafael Nadal in action in Barcelona

Rafael Nadal made a winning return to action at the 2024 Barcelona Open as he eased to a straight sets opening round victory against Flavio Cobolli.

The great Spaniard responded to a question about his service motion after his victory, while his performance was described as “very impressive” by former world No 4 Greg Rusedski.

Nadal dismantled Cobolli, the world No 62, 6-2, 6-3 with a strong display in his first match since his appearance in Brisbane over three months ago. The Mallorcan broke twice in each set and dropped his own serve only once, when he was 2-0 up in the second set.

The 37-year-old, who had been unable to play since Brisbane due to injuries, never looked in danger against the 21-year-old Italian, who produced an error-strewn performance and looked overawed by the occasion.

The 22-time Grand Slam champion is playing just his second tournament since the 2023 Australian Open, where he sustained a hip injury that required surgery.

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The former world No 1 delighted the fans inside the Pista Rafael Nadal — the centre court at the Barcelona Open named after him — with a vintage forehand winner in the second set.

Rusedski, a tennis analyst and former US Open finalist, gave his verdict on Nadal’s comeback victory and looked ahead to his second round showdown with Alex de Minaur.

“Very impressive from @RafaelNadal having not played a competitive match in such a long time,” wrote the former British No 1 on X.

“Wasn’t tested and movement looked solid. His next match versus de Minaur will be a true test of where he is really at physically.”

There had been much interest in how Nadal’s serve would look during the match after he recently revealed an abdominal issue was the reason he had not been able to compete since January.

Legendary tennis coach Brad Gilbert assessed that the 12-time Barcelona Open champion’s service motion was “abbreviated” against Cobolli and suggested this was perhaps due to the injury.

“Good start for Vamos-Rafa in Barcelona, serve is more abbreviated maybe to protect stomach,” the former world No 4 tweeted.

Journalist Molly McElwee reported on X that Nadal was asked about his serve in an interview with Spanish TV after the match.

The Spaniard played down the concerns, saying: “I’m not going to serve like crazy [in my first match back].

“I have some moments where I feel more freedom. Some I feel I need to be more careful. I just need to be logical.”

Nadal will face world No 11 Alex de Minaur in the second round of the ATP 500 tournament on Wednesday in what promises to be a much sterner test.

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