Spanish star Rafael Nadal has celebrated his return to court after 5 months with the title. World number 6 Nadal defeated US qualifier Maxime Cressy 7-6, 6-3 in one hour and 44 minutes in the final of the summer set tournament in Melbourne. This is the 89th Tour Level Trophy of 35-year-old Nadal's career, which played his first tournament since August.
This was Nadal's first final in Australia after Djokovic's defeat in the final of the 2019 Australian Open. Nadal has also set a record of winning at least one title every season since 2004.
Halep wins first trophy in Australia: According to reports, Romania's Simona Halep defeated Russia's Veronika Kudermetova 6-2, 6-3 to become the champion in the women's section. This is his first title in Australia and 23rd career title. This is Halep's first trophy in the last two years. He had earlier won the Rome Open in 2020.
Â
Very happy to be back playing after all this months… and winning Â
 Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) January 9, 2022
 @AustralianOpen #AustralianOpen #Melbourne pic.twitter.com/EEul5FfJhE
Â
Novak Djokovic gets court relief
The Russian boxer went into a coma after the fight, now a victim of death