Botic van de Zandschulp miscues a backhand which falls well wide of the line on his first set point - but makes no mistake on his second.

The Dutchman really stepped it up towards the end of the first set and gets his reward, crashing through the front door of Rafael Nadal's farewell party.

Can the retiring Spaniard produce a fightback?

Botic van de Zandschulp is really firing now!

Another sublime two-handed backhand proves too good as the Dutchman begins his bid to close out the opening set and dampen the spirit of the home fans somewhat.

Three set points.

Botic van de Zandschulp gets the break - and what a way to take it!

The Dutchman appeared to switch off after believing he'd missed the baseline, slamming a cross-court winner out of Rafael Nadal's reach to set up the chance to serve out the first set.

A look of disappointment on Nadal's face as he takes his seat at the change of ends. The crowd get behind him as he tries to plot a way back into this.

There has been plenty of quality so far, and it's Botic van de Zandschulp who is rising to the occasion.

The Dutchman sets up for the first break points of the contest but Rafael Nadal survives the first as the tension builds.

But Botic van de Zandschulp once again holds his nerve, landing a volley out of reach despite doing so while backpedalling from the net. Impressive stuff.

After three double faults in his opening game, Botic van de Zandschulp's latest leaves the door ajar for Rafael Nadal as the Spaniard is helped to 40-30 - and then piles on the pressure with a powerful forehand into the corner.

Jonathan Jurejko
BBC Sport in Malaga

I must say, the Jose Maria Martin Carpena Arena - which usually plays host to basketball - isn't quite as staunchly partisan as you might think.

The corner opposite is completely orange.

The Dutch have travelled in numbers and, like the Brits, I'd imagine a healthy number have holiday homes on the Costa del Sol.

In the city which spawned Pablo Picasso, the Dutch orange mixed with Spanish red and yellow creates quite the fitting colourful palette.

(And yes I know Guernica - his most famous piece - is monochrome...)

Botic van de Zandschulp battles to deuce on Rafael Nadal's serve, and the Spaniard isn't hiding his emotion as he lets out a huge celebratory roar on his way to holding serve. There can be no doubt how much this week is about winning for Rafa.

Rafael Nadal skips into a fist pump after burying a crowd-pleasing forehand winner as he moves to 30-0, but Botic van de Zandschulp finds the line with Nadal stranded at the net to stay in touch.

Nadal misses a first serve, his vibration dampener flying off his racquet. A quick apology to his opponent as the Spaniard has to walk over and retrieve it before getting back to business...

Botic van de Zandschulp lands a couple of clean winners to take charge on serve, closing out with a big finish to once again draw level with the home favourite. It's heating up nicely.

Rafael Nadal certainly isn't moving around the court as fast as he used to, and he's looking to keep the points as short as possible here.

It's so far, so good for the 22-time major winner and four-time Davis Cup champion.

Image source, Getty Images

A delightful flick of the left wrist from Rafael Nadal, who sends a sweeping forehand down the line and forces Botic van de Zandschulp into the net.

Chants of 'Ole, ole, ole, ole' ring around the arena in response, before Nadal forces another error following a big serve to hold to love and edge back in front.

Botic van de Zandschulp continues his solid start, holding to love. Amid all the excitement and anticipation around Rafael Nadal's farewell, the Dutchman is doing well to stick to his task.

Jonathan Jurejko
BBC Sport in Malaga

Image source, Getty Images

Hordes of foreign visitors climbing aboard a travel coach is a familiar sight in the Costa de Sol.

Yesterday, groups of international journalists did the same. It was a unique early morning excursion to Fuengirola, however, for the start of Nadal's farewell show.

With the media room at the Palacio de Deportes too small to accommodate everyone, hundreds of reporters and photographers were instead asked to go to the five-star Higueron Hotel in the hills overlooking the tourist resort.

Inside a vast conference hall, journalists were reminded it was the team news conference for Spain - not solely the Nadal show.

Inevitably almost all the questions - in both the English and Spanish parts - were for Nadal.

Once again Rafael Nadal shows his fighting spirit as he wrestles back control of a service game to make a solid start in Malaga, where the opening match of the 2024 Davis Cup Finals remains on serve.

Of course, there is a LOT of love for Rafael Nadal inside the arena - but the Netherlands have brought strong support.

The Dutch fans are making a lot of noise as Botic van de Zandschulp again reaches 15-30 on Nadal's serve - but he goes big and strikes long on this latest opportunity to put his opponent under pressure.

Alongside his individual success, Rafael Nadal has starred as a team player for Spain - winning four Davis Cup titles.

Since losing his first match in the tournament back in 2004, Nadal has gone unbeaten in 29 singles matches.

His ongoing 32-match winning streak across both singles and doubles in the competition is the longest in Davis Cup history.

Botic van de Zandschulp manages to steady himself after a concerning run of points to get the Netherlands on the board. Big relief, that.

Jonathan Jurejko
BBC Sport in Malaga

Just in case you were wondering: Nadal has not lost any of his famous fighting spirit.

The body and mind might slow down, but his heart will always remain as ferocious as ever.

Once he gets over the line in the first game, we see a familiar sight.

Nadal spins on his right foot, drags his left foot across the court and jabs the air with a right-handed upper cut.

Image source, Getty Images

Every point for Rafael Nadal is being cheered - but the crowd are left disappointing after their celebrations are curtailed, Nadal narrowly missing the line when many inside the arena believed he'd landed a brilliant winner.

Botic van de Zandschulp appears to be doing an excellent job of quietening the noise around him but the Dutchman double-faults three times on game points from 40-0! Deuce.