Nadal off to winning start at US Open

Rafael Nadal has moved through to the second round of the US Open – but not without a fight.

World No.85 Dusan Lajovic pushed the top-seeded Nadal to the brink in a tense first set, before Nadal eventually nabbed it after 64 minutes.

From there, he got on top, and ran away with a 7-6(6) 6-2 6-2 victory.

Nadal was quickly down 3-1 in the opening set of a match played beneath a closed roof at Arthur Ashe Stadium on a rainy Tuesday in New York, which decimated the schedule.

GALLERY: US Open Day 2

Nadal, the only man to complete his match on Day 2 at Flushing Meadows, wasn’t a fan of the indoor conditions.

“Is true that today, under the roof, was too much. Too much noise, no? I was not able to hear the ball when you are hitting, no?” he said.

“So I don’t know. I understand it’s a show, at the end of the day, and I enjoy that. I feel part of this, of course, but under the roof, you know, we need to be a little bit more strict about the noise, in my opinion, no? Because all the noise stays inside, and this is difficult, no? With the roof open, feeling change a lot.”

Nevertheless, Nadal got back on track when he broke back at love in the 10th game when Lajovic was serving for the opening set.

In the second set, the Spaniard broke immediately and took a two-sets-to-love lead with an ace.

He completed the two-hour, 16-minute win when Lajovic sent a return long.

“The important thing is win, because is normal that you have some nerves at the beginning and you get a little bit tight at the beginning of the tournament,” he said.

“So important thing is be through, and that’s what I did today, no? Tough start but then I played better, of course.”

Next up for Nadal is either Taro Daniel of Japan or local hope Tommy Paul.