Rafael Nadal was beaten in what might prove to be the final match of his career as the start of his Davis Cup retirement party fell flat.
Spanish great Nadal, who has won 22 Grand Slam titles, will end his playing days after the men's team event in Malaga.
It had been unclear whether the 38-year-old would be ready to feature in the singles but he was selected for the first match against the Netherlands, despite not playing competitively for over three months.
The move backfired in front of a partisan Spanish crowd as Nadal lost 6-4 6-4 to Botic van de Zandschulp, who stayed composed in testing conditions to put his team 1-0 up.