'It's never easy': Demon upstages Nadal in big win

Rafael Nadal’s first tournament since January lasted only two matches with the Spaniard losing 7-5, 6-1 to Alex de Minaur at the clay-court Barcelona Open.

Nadal, back from an injury layoff, looked like his old self for brief moments in the second-round match but couldn’t keep up with the 11th-ranked de Minaur.

“The moment I lost the first set, the match was over,” Nadal said. “I can’t play a three-hour match right now. This wasn’t the place for me to give everything I have. We’ll see what happens in Paris. I want to be competitive there, that’s where I have to give it all.”

Nadal is a 14-time winner at Roland-Garros, which begins next month. He said he will try to play at the Madrid Open next week but didn’t fully commit.

Rafael Nadal’s return from injury ended in a loss.

“I didn’t want to take any risks,” Nadal said. “The important thing here was to play and I played. To be on the court is great news.”

The 22-time Grand Slam champion had comfortably defeated 62nd-ranked Flavio Cobolli in straight sets in the first round in what was his first competitive match in more than three months.

Nadal again looked injury-free against de Minaur but was never in control against the in-form Aussie, who picked up his second career win over Nadal.

“I think about the only thing I might have on Rafa on clay is physicality at this stage of his career,” De Minaur said.

“I decided to try and make the rallies quite physical and long, use my speed to my advantage. It’s never easy against him.”

It was only Nadal’s fifth defeat at the Barcelona Open, a tournament he has won a record 12 times.

“It’s natural that this was probably my last match here,” Nadal said. “I really enjoyed playing here. It was unimaginable to win it 12 times.”

Alex de Minaur of Australia salutes Rafael Nadal.

Nadal is returning from yet another injury layoff and hadn’t played since an exhibition match against Carlos Alcaraz in March.

Before this week, he had played only three competitive matches this year — all in Brisbane in January — before skipping the Australian Open.

Nadal also withdrew from Monte Carlo, saying he his body wasn’t ready.

The 37-year old Nadal had hip surgery last summer and said 2024 will probably be his last year playing on tour.