Nadal, Moyá debut at Australian Open today 14/01/2008 00:00

A number of Spain's numerous competitors in the Australian Open play first matches on Monday.

14 January 2008

MADRID - Marking the official beginning of the Australian Open, the tennis season's first Grand Slam event, a number of Spain's numerous competitors in the tournament will play their first round matches on day one.

All eyes will be on the debut match of Spain's tennis hero and world number two Rafael Nadal, who will face Serbia's Viktor Troicki on court in Melbourne's Rod Laver Stadium today. A rested Nadal will be playing for the first Grand Slam title of the year with high expectations, mathematically with his first-ever opportunity to challenge Roger Federer for the number one position.

Ranked 16 in the tournament, Carlos Moyà will also take the court in the first day of competition against Austria's Stefan Koubek, after losing to Agustín Calleri in the second round of Sydney's Medibank qualifier last week. Moyà came close to winning the prestigious title back in 1997, where he lost in the final.

Also today, twelve-seed Tommy Robredo will play the German Mischa Zverev.

In their first-round matches starting on Tuesday, world number five David Ferrer will be looking for his first-ever Australian Open title, starting with France's Edouard Roger-Vasselin.

And Spain's Juan Carlos Ferrero, who recently finished runner-up in an Auckland warm-up event, will play Germany's Nicolas Kiefer in his first-round match.

[Copyright EL PAÍS 2008]

Subject: Spanish news