Nadal wins first setpublished at 08:48 Greenwich Mean Time 21 January 2015
Three break points. Not just any break points either. Set and break points.
With a cushion to work with Rafael Nadal takes a jaunt to the net on the first. He has not applied enough pressure to Tim Smyczek to make that work though.
The American had all the time he wanted to slide away a winner with Nadal looking he was in a recurring nightmare - horribly exposed bang in the middle of the net and unable to cut off the acres of court behind him.
Back to the old familiar on the next. And that does the trick. A skidding forehand out wide and even Smyczek has not got the wheels to get there.