Rafael Nadal marks Barcelona Open 2024 comeback with resounding win over opponent 16 years younger than him

Rafael Nadal scored a vintage win on his comeback at the 2024 Barcelona Open, beating Flavio Cobolli in straight sets to earn his first victory of the clay season.

Nadal, who was last in action at the Brisbane International at the start of the year, spent the last three months on the sidelines with an abdomen injury. He finally reached full fitness this week, allowing him to participate at the ATP 500 event, where he's a 12-time former champion.

When he stepped on to the court on Tuesday, there were hardly any signs of rust from the 22-time Grand Slam champion, as he quickly took the opening set 6-2.

Although Cobolli was marginally better in the second, the 21-year-old could only win one more game than in the first, as Nadal cruised to a 6-2, 6-3 win in a little under an hour and 30 minutes.

While the Spaniard didn't serve any aces during the match, it was a good serving performance from him, winning 78% (25/32) of his first serve points and 53% (9/17) of his second serve points.

He converted four of 10 break points and won 16 points more than Cobolli (44) at the end of the day.

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Rafael Nadal to take on Alex de Minaur in Barcelona Open second round

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Following his win over Flavio Cobolli in the first round, Rafael Nadal next takes on fourth seed Alex de Minaur in the second round of the Barcelona Open. De Minaur received a bye in the first round and will be playing his first match of the tournament against Nadal.

The duo have faced off four times previously, with the Spaniard leading their head-to-head 3-1. However, the last time they faced off, De Minaur came out on top in straight sets at the 2023 United Cup. Their Barcelona meeting will be the first time Nadal takes on the Aussie on clay.

Victory in the second round will pit the former World No. 1 against either Arthur Fils or Daniel Altmaier in the third round, while either 11th seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina or sixth seed Ugo Humbert are the likely opponents in the quarterfinals.

Meanwhile, the expected semifinal and final opponents (according to seeding) are fifth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas and third seed Casper Ruud respectively.