Rafael Nadal of Spain celebrates after defeating Francisco Cerundolo in the first round of the Wimbledon Championships.
Wimbledon 2022: Rafael Nadal made a winning return on Tuesday as he defeated Francisco Cerundolo 6-4, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 in the first round of the Wimbledon Championships.
Nadal, who did not participate in the warm-up tournaments due to a foot injury survived a scare but prevailed in three hours and 36 minutes thriller to enter the second round.
The 36-year-old second seed who has not played at the Wimbledon since 2019 said that every day is a test and that he is looking forward to the challenge.
"It is not a surface that we play very often, especially in my case in the last three years I didn't put any foot on the grass," Nadal said.
"Every day is a test and I am at the beginning of the tournament and the difficult circumstances (under which) I arrived here."
In front of a packed crowd on Centre Court, Nadal survived a mid-match comeback from the Argentine, who was making his debut at The Championships. After winning the first two sets, the 36-year-old suddenly found himself a break down in the fourth set.
However, with the pressure on, Nadal raised his intensity and increased his depth on return to regain control and improve to 31-4 on the season.
The second seed is seeking a record-extending 23rd Grand Slam title, having won the first two majors of the year for the first time in his career.
He will face Ricardas Berankis in the second round after the Lithuanian defeated Sam Querrey 6-4, 7-5, 6-3.
(Inputs Agencies)
