Rafael Nadal drops first set but rallies to defeat Rinky Hijikata at US Open
Rafael Nadal is back in fine form as the Spaniard cruised to a first-round win at the US Open.
The world No 2 dropped the opening set against the Japanese veteran but never looked back, clinching the match with a third-set tie-break.
The 31-year-old had never beaten Hijikata in four previous meetings, but he managed to draw level at 5-5 in the fourth set – winning seven of the last eight games.
Nadal, however, will face the challenge of his countryman Roger Federer, who could be aiming for a first French Open title.
The Swiss former champion broke Nadal in the opening game of the third set but then took control with breaks of his own as he went on to win 7-5, 3-6, 7-6(3) in just 36 minutes.
Federer and Nadal are both unbeaten in the opening weeks of the season, but Hijikata made the closest of starts as he forced three breaks in the opening game of the second set.
World number five Tseng then kept things close as he took care of two of his game points just after the break.
The Chinese number one held his serve well to level the tiebreak and then raced further ahead on his second serve to secure the break in the decider.
With his first set victory in his last 33 matches, Tseng is now 11-3 all time at the opening fortnight of the year.
His third loss of the season came in the second round against No 9 Juan Monaco, losing 5-7, 6-1, 6-4 to suffer his first defeat in his last six matches.
Monaco did his part to end the Malaysian’s record winning streak in the second set, breaking Hijikata in the third game while trailing 6-0.
But Tseng then fought back to level the contest at 5-5 before Nadal pulled away.
In a match where the top player led 6-3, 6-4 and then 7-5, Roger Federer took care of four of his game points while Hijikata picked up just one of his own.
The 37-year-old then produced a superb passing shot at the 17th