Rafael Nadal didn’t face much of a challenge in his straightforward win over American teenager Darwin Blanch in the opening match of the Madrid Open.
Nadal easily won 6-1, 6-0 against the 16-year-old Blanch, who made quite a few mistakes during the match.
“I didn’t have to push my body much today,” said Nadal, who is 37 years old. “I played a decent match and did what I needed to do to win, but my opponent made more mistakes.”
Blanch, playing in only his second ATP tour match, made 27 unforced errors. Nadal didn’t have to defend against any break points and dominated the match from the beginning against the wildcard entry.
He wrapped up the match in just over an hour at the Caja Magica center court in Madrid.
“I believe my opponent has a bright future,” Nadal said. “But today, he made some mistakes. I focused on staying solid without taking too many risks. It worked well, and I’m happy to advance. I wish him all the best for the future.”
The match featured the biggest age difference (21 years, 117 days) between two opponents in an ATP 1000 tournament.
Nadal seemed to be in good shape and didn’t show any signs of physical limitations, despite this being only his third competitive match since returning from injury.
