Nadal off the mark in New York

Originally published on: 27/08/13 00:00

The world No.2, playing in his first hard-court major since January 2012, strolled past American Ryan Harrison 6-4 6-2 6-2 on his return to Arthur Ashe Stadium court.

Nadal is unbeaten in 16 matches on hard courts in 2013 and arrived in New York on the back of a 10-match winning streak following back-to-back Masters 1000 victories in Montreal and Cincinnati.

However, the Spaniard, who missed last year’s US Open with a knee injury, insists form counts for nothing at the final major of the season.

"It's difficult to analyze now," Nadal replied when asked if he was playing his best hard-court tennis. "I am playing well and happy with the way I was playing. I don't know if it was the best or not, but it was very good because I was able to win.

"We go day by day. [To win] two tournaments before is great for my career because both tournaments are very important ones. But that [doesn't] mean I will play great here. That means that I am doing the right things."

Nadal, who completed his career Grand Slam at Flushing Meadows when he beat Novak Djokovic in the 2010 US Open final, has lost just three matches since his return to action from a seven-month injury layoff in February.

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