World number one Rafael Nadal won the first match he has played since last month’s French Open triumph, beating Israel’s Dudi Sela in straight sets to reach the Wimbledon second round.
London:
The Spaniard, seeded second behind 2017 champion Roger Federer, won 6-3 6-3 6-2 against the world number 127. The two-time champion had played no warm-up tournaments on grass but was barely troubled on Centre Court.
It is the second successive year that Nadal has arrived at the All England Club without playing any other grass-court tournaments.
He looked comfortable on a surface he had not played on for a year. His first breakthrough arrived when Sela double-faulted to put him 5-3 up in the first set and he served it out.
While Sela at times surprised the Spaniard by matching his athleticism and getting to seemingly impossible drop shots to draw gasps from the crowd, he also gave too much away.
He gifted Nadal the break in the first game of the second set when he hit a straightforward volley at the net and from then on seemed resigned to his fate against an energetic-looking Nadal.
Nadal needed three match points to settle the encounter, which he did with a powerful backhand.
He said there was still “room to improve” but was happy to advance.
“After a while without playing on grass it’s very important to start with a straight victory,” he said. “I went to the net a couple of times, later in the third set I served worse, but in general terms I served well.”