Acapulco International: Rafael Nadal beats Mischa Zverev to enter second round

The world No. 2 faces Nick Kyrgios in the round of 16 after the Australian defeated Andreas Seppi of Italy 6-3 7-5.

Rafa Nadal showed no signs of rust in his first action in a month as the top seed easily dispatched Mischa Zverev 6-3 6-3 at the Acapulco International on Tuesday.

File image of Rafael Nadal celebrating after winning a point during a game. (AFP)

Nadal, competing for the first time since falling to Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open final, has reached the final in all three previous appearances in Acapulco and now has a record of 15-1 in the event.

The world No. 2 faces Nick Kyrgios in the round of 16 after the Australian defeated Andreas Seppi of Italy 6-3 7-5.

Second seed Alexander Zverev lost just one point on serve in a dominant 6-3 6-3 win over Alexei Popyrin while John Isner, seeded third, recorded 18 aces in a 6-3 4-6 6-3 win over France’s Adrian Mannarino.

Isner next faces fellow American Sam Querrey, who beat Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 6-3 6-2.

Fourth seed Diego Schwartzman needed more than two hours to advance past Marius Copil 6-3 4-6 6-1. Schwartzman has returned to action after a right leg injury forced him to retire at the Rio Open last week, preventing him from defending his title.

He next faces Briton Cameron Norrie, who defeated Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka 6-2 2-6 6-2.