ARTICLES:

• Nadal Working His Way Back (via ATP World Tour)

Nadal dropped just seven games as he breezed past the experienced Russian on Rod Laver Arena on Monday in the first round. However, he insisted it is going to take more matches before he will feel comfortable on the court again.

• Nadal back in groove with emphatic win (via Australian Open)

Rafa’s back. Gracing Rod Laver Arena in a blur of neon pink and green, a human highlighter, the 2009 Australian Open champion produced his first win at a Grand Slam in over six months, beating Mikhail Youzhny 6-3 6-2 6-2. And it was a pleasure to see. … Dropping just four more games for the rest of the match, the world No.3 finished with 89 per cent first serves won, 78 per cent returns made, 37 winners, just 15 unforced errors and just one break point faced.

• Nadal shows veteran form in opening match in Melbourne (via SI.com)

Better on every dimension, Nadal won 6-3, 6-2, 6-2, reminding us of just how devastatingly well he can play. Thus is what we forget about Nadal. He may be incapable of playing a full season. But when he’s healthy, he doesn’t take much for him to find his form. Even he struggled to temper his excitement afterwards.

• Rafael Nadal rolls in opening match (via ESPN)

If Rafael Nadal needed any reminding of how long it has been since he won the Australian Open, he only needed to look at the “09” on the back of his left shoe.

• Nadal Serves Notice to the Doubters (via New York Times)

“He’s an amazing champion, and he’ll go down as one of the greatest tennis players ever, so it’s going to be really a treat for me, and I’m going to try to squeeze every bit of fun I can out of it.” Was it more Nadal’s achievements or his character that he admired? “Both,” Smyczek said. “He’s one of the nicest guys in the locker room. He’ll always say hello to you, and he just seems like a really good guy, and obviously it’s hard to argue with his achievements, however many French Opens he’s won.”

• Rafael Nadal advances with emphatic win at Australian Open (via tennis.com)
• Rafael Nadal’s new racket comes with a power switch (via USA Today)

Nadal’s uncle and coach, Toni, joked that the racket would give him an edge. “Sometimes when I correct Rafa on how he’s hitting the ball, he doesn’t agree.” said Toni. “Now I have the data.” Nadal retorted, without missing a beat, “Now he has the data to know that he was wrong.“

• Australian Open Scene: McHale’s recovery, Nadal’s shorts (via tennis.com)

‘I don’t think many men could pull off this pink reflector,” the commentator told Nadal, drawing stadium-wide laughter as he pointed out the neon pink stripe down the side of Nadal’s white shorts. Nadal joined the laughter, saying these were his ”party” shorts for the past couple of months during his time off.

PHOTOS:

• Rafael Nadal Wins 1st-Round Match at the Australian Open
• Same as he ever was (via Australian Open)
• Photos from Rafa’s Day 1 Practice Session (via Grand Slam Gal)

VIDEOS:

• AO 2015: Nadal vs Youzhny Highlights (via Tennis Highlights HD)
• Day 1 highlights from the AO 2015 (via Australian Open)
• Rafael Nadal press conference (1R)
• Nadal’s Incredible Cross-Court Winner (via ESPN)
• Rafael Nadal rocks short shorts in Melbourne
• Kia Open Drive: Rafael Nadal talks about his ideal holiday and his first date
• The pressure builds on Rafael Nadal (via Australian Open)
• Glitz and Glamour at the IMG player party (via Australian Open)