Nadal makes good progress against a worthy Hanfmann

Again on the Australian day, with the ball more alive, at 27 degrees, and again with an accessible opponent, in this case coming from the previous phase,

continued his placid path in the opening rounds of the Australian Open.

More demanding than in his debut, the Spaniard gained in confidence and performance to beat

6-2, 6-3, 6-4, in two hours and 42 minutes.

This Friday he will seek

his presence in the round of 16 against

or

At 30 years old, without relevant news in a race developed in the suburbs of the circuit, Hanfmann, 126th,

came out

loose and determined, looking to take the initiative, especially in his turns of service.

His backhand caused some initial problems for Nadal, who in the fifth game already had to face a break ball.

The Spanish solved it with a serve point, signaling hierarchy.

If the left-hander came with close shooting after his reappearance, with the victory at the ATP 250 in Melbourne, his opponent was not lacking, with three matches in the qualifying phase and the victory in the first round against the local

, recent champion in Adelaide.

Nadal was the first to take a bite out of the scoreboard, with the

in the sixth game, a consequence of his best reading of a rival whom he had already defeated two years ago in three sets at Roland Garros.

Hanfmann did not take the two chances of breaking and saw the 2009 champion grow, who knew how to defend himself and counterattack, sharpening his racket until he won the first set.

most demanded

Although the result was clear for Nadal, the obligations were different. Hanfmann proposed more than

, the opponent of the sixth favorite in the debut. Trained in a Californian university, only seventh German player in the ranking, the one from Karlsruhe has his best news on the circuit in the Bastad semifinals last year. It was sustained at the beginning of the second set, when the attacks of the Spanish intensified. Nadal had

in each game until he resolved in the eighth and completed the work below to obtain a two-set lead that was already presumed final. If there is one but that can be put against the man from Manacor, it is the discreet percentage of success in break balls: four of 16.

Hanfmann resisted until then, shaken early in the third set, although he held on until the fifth match point. After five months on the shoulder, overcoming Covid and as the only champion present in the draw, Nadal, who is looking for his twenty-first major, is where he wanted and how he wanted, physically whole, without a hint of concern about the foot ailment that has kept off the track and willing to claim his name against the push of those who see in the tournament an opportunity to continue discussing the dominance of the fractured

"I knew him from the Roland Garros match and I knew he was dangerous. He has good shots and a great serve. He played tennis above his ranking," he later commented on his rival.

"After the injury, I have tried to lose some weight. The matches help. I needed them," he added when asked about his fitness.

"At times I played well, at others I should have done things better."

Carlos Alcaraz

will also be in the third round.

Shortly after Nadal's victory, he finished his victory against

6-1 6-2 and 7-5.

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