After the hullabaloo surrounding his chequered preparations for the French Open, Rafael Nadal continued his relatively serene progress through the opening rounds of the tournament with a 6-1, 6-3, 6-2 victory over Russia’s Andrey Kuznetsov that was every bit as straightforward as the scoreline suggests.
If Nadal’s confidence was ebbing in the prelude to Roland Garros, when he failed to win a title on the European clay-court swing for the first time in a decade, then the restorative powers of a first week in which he has resembled his old self more closely with each passing round should not be underestimated.