World No. 1 Nadal admits beating Nikoloz Basilashvili despite mistakes; Djokovic overcomes South African Anderson in Oz
Rafael Nadal of Team Spain celebrates his win over Nikoloz Basilashvili of Team Georgia at the RAC Arena in Perth on Saturday
Sydney: Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic kickstarted their build-up to the Australian Open with straight sets wins at the ATP Cup Saturday, but World No. 4 Dominic Thiem slumped to defeat. Top-ranked Nadal had little trouble with Georgia's Nikoloz Basilashvili, racing to a 6-3, 7-5 victory, while long-time rival Djokovic was given more of a test by South Africa's Kevin Anderson before overcoming him 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (8/6).
Spain, Serbia win openers
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Their wins ensured Spain and Serbia clinched their ties at the inaugural 24-nation team event, where the countries are split into six groups across Sydney, Brisbane and Perth. The top eight from the round robin go onto the knockout phase in Sydney before one is eventually crowned the winner. France, Argentina, Croatia and Japan also began their tournament in style, winning their ties to join day one victors Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Norway, Russia and Australia. "I'm super, super happy to be here in Perth for first time in my life. It's an amazing arena and a great crowd," said Nadal.
"It was a tough first match-up of the season. It was not an easy start. I had some mistakes but was able to close it out. But I think I played a great game." Earlier, his teammate Roberto Bautista Agut crushed a hapless Aleksandre Metreveli 6-0, 6-0. Serbian superstar Djokovic needed to produce some of his best tennis to see off the big-serving Anderson, admitting it was a testing encounter.
"What a way to start the year," he said. "He was on fire tonight—I think the quality of tennis was quite high. "I was very pleased with the way I kind of weathered the storm." His teammate Dusan Lajovic outlasted Lloyd Harris 3-6, 7-6 (7/4), 6-3. Austria's Dominic Thiem had six break points in the third set against Croatia's Borna Coric, but failed to convert any of them. "It's really nice to beat him because at the end of last season I was not playing well and this will give me a lot of confidence," said Coric, ranked 28 and who suffered six losses in a row in late 2019.
Cilic defeats Dennis
Fellow Croat Marin Cilic, a finalist at the 2018 Australian Open, used his experience to down Austria's Dennis Novak 6-7 (7/4), 6-4, 6-4, and ensure Croatia won the tie in Sydney.
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