Under the rediscovered Madrid sun, Nadal had to grit his teeth to overcome 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 (11/9) the Belgian David Goffin, ex-N.7 in the world today 60th after a long left knee injury.
The 35-year-old Spaniard initially seemed to be heading for a relatively quiet straight-sets victory, until getting two first match points, the first at 5-3 on Goffin's serve, the second at 5-4 on his own commitment.
But he didn't convert either and instead let four games in a row slip away to find himself in a third set - and an extended game.
No doubt physically damaged after his six weeks without competition, including a full month without training, Nadal was less bleeding and less mobile in this second part of the match.
His shots, still definitive a little earlier, weren't anymore, his ball hurt less, he stood farther from his line and made more mistakes: all this allowed Goffin to develop his game, which the Belgian had the great merit of doing with the way.
In turn, Goffin got two first chances to conclude, 6 points to 4 in the deciding game, then a third at 7-6, and a fourth at 9-8.
But if Nadal folded, he never broke and it was he who ended up winning, on his fourth match point, 11 points to 9.
The day before, barely three weeks from Roland-Garros (May 22-June 5), the Mallorcan had launched his season on clay late but convincingly, his beloved surface, against the Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic (32nd), one of the in-form players from the first part of the 2022 season, beaten 6-1, 7-6 (7/4).
Rafael Nadal after his victory against David Goffin, May 5, 2022 in Madrid OSCAR DEL POZO AFP
Alcaraz, winner of his first Masters 1000 in Miami at the beginning of April and entered the top 10 after his victory in Barcelona ten days ago, faces him the Briton Cameron Norrie (11th) in the evening (from 8:00 p.m.).
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