Rafael Nadal was an easy opening- round winner Monday at the $1.87 Swiss Indoors Basel tennis tournament.
The second-seeded former world No. 1 star eased past helpless Italian Simone Bolelli 6-2, 6-2 on the hardcourts at St. Jakobshalle.
The French Open champion Nadal recently returned to the tour after being sidelined by a wrist injury for three months and has also battled appendicitis over the last couple of weeks.
Also on Day 1 in Basel, American left-hander Donald Young dismissed Argentine Carlos Berlocq 7-6 (7-5), 6-4.
The top seed this week is Swiss icon, five-time champion, five-time runner- up and Basel native Roger Federer.
Federer lost to Argentine star Juan Martin del Potro in the last two Basel title tilts and has appeared in the last eight finals in his hometown.
His opening-round opponent this week will be Luxembourg lefty Gilles Muller.
In addition to Federer and Nadal, this week's outstanding field also features Swiss star and Australian Open champion Stan Wawrinka, as well as young stars Milos Raonic and Grigor Dimitrov.
The 2014 Basel champ will claim $450,000.
[SportsNetwork.com]
