Andy Murray breezed past teenager Imran Sibille as he continued his comeback from surgery at the Rafa Nadal Open in Mallorca.
Murray, currently ranked 328th in the world, won 6-0 6-1 in just 44 minutes on Monday evening.
"It was good, it's nice to get back on the court playing matches again," he said courtside. "It's nice so many people came out to watch. It's a brilliant place to play tennis and great conditions."
📹 Andy Murray is pleased to get off to a winning start in the Rafa Nadal Open
— Sporting Life (@SportingLife) August 26, 2019
💬 "Nice to get back on court, playing matches again," he said after a 44-minute cruise...
(Video credit: Rafa Nadal Sports Centre) pic.twitter.com/9I0BHrI5JR
Sibille, a trainee at the Rafa Nadal Academy which is hosting the event, avoided a whitewash by winning the penultimate game.
The 17-year-old Frenchman does not have an ATP ranking and stands at equal 2,792nd on the International Tennis Federation's system.
Murray is due to face third seed Norbert Gombos, who is ranked 116th in the world, in the second round.
He added: "It'll be a tough match, against the third seed. He made the quarter finals of the ATP tour in Washington a few weeks ago. It'll be a good test for me."
🎾 While the eyes of the tennis world are on New York, Andy Murray has won his first singles match since hip surgery
— Sporting Life (@SportingLife) August 26, 2019
💪 It was as easy as they come for the three-time grand slam winner, who needed just 44 minutes to advancepic.twitter.com/kMIzcwVMz1
Three-time major winner Murray is building up his match fitness after the implantation of a metal hip in January.
He has played in two ATP Tour events and is now competing on the second-tier Challenger Tour for the first time since 2005.
The 32-year-old Scot pulled out of the doubles at the US Open to concentrate on his singles comeback.
