Tennis - Australian Open - Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia - 17/1/17 Spain's Rafael Nadal stretches to hit a shot during his Men's singles first round match against Germany's Florian Mayer. REUTERS/Jason Reed
MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Rafa Nadal easily avoided the embarrassment of a back-to-back first round exits at the Australian Open on Tuesday, ramping up his serve and rattling off 39 winners to beat Florian Mayer 6-3 6-4 6-4 on Rod Laver Arena.
The 2009 champion, seeded ninth after a disappointing injury-disrupted 2016 season, grasped his chances ruthlessly to overcome the German in a little over two hours in the brutal afternoon heat at Melbourne Park.
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