Rafa Nadal will begin the defense of his Australian Open title on Monday with a first-round test against rising Briton Jack Draper as a new era begins on the blue hardcourts at Melbourne Park.
In the first Grand Slam since Roger Federer’s retirement and Serena Williams “passed away” from tennis, Spain’s Nadal carries the flame for the fading golden generation as he bids for a 23rd major title and third at Melbourne Park.
The 36-year-old is seeded third at Rod Laver Arena, returning to center court where a year ago he spelled the “Miracle of Melbourne”, coming back from two sets down to topple Daniil Medvedev in a five-set classic .
However, as Nadal saw on Saturday, tennis moves quickly.
The top seed has only one win since September’s US Open and admitted his title defense was vulnerable to an early setback after two straight defeats in the lead-up.
A young man in a hurry, the 21-year-old Draper broke into the top 40 after a run in the Adelaide II semi-finals last week and earlier won a string of top players including Stefanos Tsitsipas and Felix Auger-Aliassime. ,
“It’s probably one of the toughest first rounds because of being seeded,” Nadal said of the match-up.