"Like Rafael Nadal never went away" "Hand Australian Open trophy already" - Fans react to Spaniard winning on comeback at Brisbane International

Rafael Nadal won his comeback match at the Brisbane International by defeating Dominic Thiem 7-5, 6-1. The Spaniard put in a fine display of tennis in his first match in 349 days.

Nadal took the lead in the fixture by breaking the Austrian's serve in the final game of the first set. He then dominated the second set and won it 6-1 to book his place in the second round of the Brisbane International.

This was the Spaniard's first straight-set win since the 2022 ATP Finals when he beat Casper Ruud 7-5, 7-5.

Several tennis fans were elated to see Nadal win and gave their thoughts on it. One fan said that it looked like the Spaniard never took a long break from tennis.

"Close your eyes and like he never went away," the fan's tweet read.

Another fan said Nadal looked so good that the Australian Open should already be handed to him.

"Just hand him the Australian open trophy already, too good," the fan's tweet read.

Another fan stated that Nadal became better as the match progressed and that he would be a contender at the Australian Open.

"Nadal looked very good! He got better as the match went on, won 8 of the last 9 games! Nadal is going to be Australian Open contender," the fan's tweet read.

Here are some more reactions to Nadal's victory over Thiem in Brisbane:

Rafael Nadal notched up his 10th win over Dominic Thiem

Rafael Nadal in action at the Brisbane International

Rafael Nadal's win over Dominic Thiem was his 10th against the Austrian in 16 encounters between the two.

This is also the first time he beat Thiem since the 2019 French Open final, having previously lost to him in the Australian Open and ATP Finals in 2020. The head-to-head between the two on hard courts is currently tied at 2-2.

After defeating Thiem, Nadal will next take on local boy Jason Kubler in the second round at the Brisbane International. Kubler booked his place in the last 16 of the ATP 250 event when his first-round opponent Aslan Karatsev retired after the second set of their match.

Nadal and the Aussie will lock horns for the very first time, with the winner facing either Jordan Thompson or whoever wins between fourth seed Ugo Humbert and Alex Michelsen.