Rafael Nadal’s first-round victory at the Australian Open on Monday wasn’t without its hiccups. During the first set against Britain’s Jack Draper, the 22-time grand slam champion found himself in a bit of a pickle.
With arms outstretched, Nadal explained to the umpire that his racket was missing. “It’s this one for the stringer, not that one,” Nadal said, clearly frustrated.
He elaborated, “I need the racquet back! It is this, not one. I need the dampener and everything,” referring to the small rubber piece that reduces vibration when hitting the ball.
It turned out the ball boy had mistakenly taken Nadal’s racket with the dampener to be restrung. “I don’t think he has a spare one, so I think there is going to be a delay here,” said Eurosport commentator Guy McCrea.
Nadal, selecting a different racket, apologized to Draper: “The ball boy took my racquet!” After the match, Nadal chuckled about the incident, calling it a “funny situation.”
“Normally, I have the number of the rackets under control so I said I need the stringer, but I need the stringer for the other racket,” Nadal explained to Eurosport. “So [the ball boy] picked the racket I was ready to play with. But no problem at all.”
The mishaps didn’t end there. Later, Nadal had another chat with the umpire when the floodlights switched on automatically, despite the bright daylight.
“Now it is bothering me a lot,” Nadal told the umpire, pointing to the lights. “The combination of lights.” Draper also voiced his annoyance, prompting the umpire to call for stadium staff to address the issue.
Despite these distractions, Nadal powered through, needing four sets to overcome the 21-year-old Draper. The young Briton managed to take the second set, leveling the match, but cramps hindered his performance as the game progressed. Nadal at the end triumphed 7-5, 2-6, 6-4, 6-1.
This win continues a remarkable streak: no defending champion has been ousted in the first round of the Australian Open for the past 26 years.
Reflecting on his journey, Nadal shared, “Last year had been one of the most emotional tournaments of my tennis career, no doubt about that,” referencing his epic comeback against Daniil Medvedev in the previous year’s final. “Unfortunately that passed, so we need to keep working.”
He added, “I’m super happy to be back here in Australia one more time. I don’t know, it’s like my 19th season on the professional tour. I’m very excited about this new beginning…
The last couple of months haven’t been easy for me, but hopefully this victory will help me.” Looking ahead, Nadal, the tournament’s top seed, is set to face American Mackenzie McDonald in the second round.