Rafael Nadal fought back from a slow start to defeat Belgian qualifier Zizou Bergs 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 in his opening match at the Italian Open.

Nadal endured a poor first set, losing five of the last six games, but turned things around in impressive style, spending two hours and 47 minutes on the court on Thursday.

The 10-time Italian Open champion saved all five break points he faced in the second and third sets to take key points and earn a seventh win of the season.

Nadal is competing in his third consecutive tour-level event after missing most of last year due to a hip injury that required surgery before his comeback was halted by a muscle tear in January.

"That was not my best match, I was practising better than I played today, but I found a way to win," he said after the match.

"That’s so important at the beginning of the tournament. My game is more unpredictable than before. I didn’t play much tennis for the last two years, so have some ups and downs, on and off, but I think I can do much better than today and I hope to do it next round."

The Spaniard will face seventh-seeded Hubert Hurkacz in the second round.

Data Debrief: Strong start for Nadal

Nadal had only lost one of his previous 18 opening-round matches in Rome before Thursday and avoided adding to that tally in his final appearance at the tournament.

He has the most wins at the Foro Italico (70), where he first claimed the title on his debut in 2005.