In Rafael Nadal's words:'I don't think about windy conditions, you can't change them'

Kicking off the 2003 season from just outside the top-200, the 16-year-old star in the making Rafael Nadal was determined to gain positions on the ATP list as soon as possible after a breakthrough previous year. The Manacor native lost three Challenger finals in the opening three months before winning the first Challenger crown in the last week of March in Barletta, moving closer to the place in the top-100 and showing his full potential. A couple of weeks later, the entire tennis world could witness it in Monte Carlo, with Nadal qualifying for his first Masters 1000 tournament on beloved clay and entering the second ATP event in career overall.

Making an impressive debut on the premium ATP series, Nadal dismissed world no. 49 Karol Kucera 6-1, 6-2 in 63 minutes, dropping 12 points in eight service games and fending off all three break chances to mount the pressure on the other side of the net. Dominating on both serve and return and having the upper hand all the time, Rafa claimed 56% of the return points, delivering four breaks from six opportunities and racing into the second round. Nadal played well in windy conditions, staying aggressive and making the right shots at the right time to leave the Slovak behind and set the second-round clash with the defending Roland Garros champion Albert Costa. 

"I'm delighted to win the first match; I played very well against Karol. I was more aggressive than usual, adjusting to the surface nicely and finding my shots. Like everyone else, I practiced twice a week and developed a nice touch very early, starting to work more and more and winning two national crowns at 11 and 12. We indeed had windy conditions today but I'm used to that, just playing my usual game without thinking about whether or anything, as you don't have an influence on that." 

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2R0FQqV