Rafael Nadal opened his 2012 Australian Open campaign with a positively clinical 6-4, 6-1, 6-1 victory over Alex Kuznetsov in late afternoon sunshine at Melbourne Park.
While some of Nadal’s recent remarks have caused discussion, there was no controversy, twists in the tale, or lapses in concentration in Nadal’s performance today. He broke to love to open the match, then served his ninth ace to close it out less than two hours later, having outclassed his battling opponent on every level.
Kuznetsov, a talented junior whose pro career never quite recovered from a broken leg sustained back in 2005—his first year on tour—played much better than his current ranking of No. 167 (only a little below his career high of 158). Having come on to court without a necessary piece of equipment (which had to be fetched from the locker room for him), and being forced to replay a good serve in the first game after his pace of play was too quick for Nadal, it was clear it was not Kuznetsov’s day. Still, he impressed on several levels. He was not afraid to go toe-to-toe with Nadal in baseline exchanges, and at several points his ball-striking and ability to redirect the ball for clean winners off the forehand side received well-deserved applause—as did his attitude, still fighting to earn his first break points as Rafa served for the match.
This was, however, Nadal’s show, and he put in an efficient, energy-saving performance, ending with an impressive 42 winners to 14 unforced errors, underlining his commitment to a more aggressive mode of play. While Nadal repeatedly earned cheap points on his serve, that could have had more to do with Kuznetsov’s returning than otherwise (the American won just 21 percent of points on return), but it was noticeable that after almost every serve, Rafa was advancing firmly forward into the court, looking to gain a dominant position inside the baseline and end the point quickly. He also handled high balls better than he has done in the past, driving forehands from shoulder-height or above to flatten the ball out and generate scorching pace. And although Nadal’s right knee was bandaged, his movement and footwork were not compromised.
This was only Kuznetsov’s second appearance in the main draw of the Australian Open, and his inexperience at this level cost him dearly, particularly in the dropshots, net approaches and overheads that didn’t come close to being good enough against Nadal. But it’s doubtful that anything he could have done would have troubled the world No. 2 in this punishing form, his sights clearly set on the second week. The Spaniard moves on to face Tommy Haas, who has never taken a set from Nadal in their four encounters to date. It looks quite unlikely that will change this week.
—Hannah Wilks
