Madrid Open, Nick Kyrgios
Tennis - Davis Cup Quarter Finals - Australia vs USA - Pat Rafter Arena, Brisbane, Australia - 7/4/17 - Australia's Nick Kyrgios hits a shot against John Isner of the USA during their Davis Cup quarter-final match. Reuters / Steve Holland

Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios played through a groin injury to beat Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus in the opening round of the Madrid Open on Monday. Playing in his first match since the death of his grandfather, Kyrgios delivered 14 aces to cruise past Baghdatis 7-6 (7-1) 6-4 to advance in the clay-court tournament.

Kyrgios, the 16th seed, won 81 per cent of service points and converted his only break point after the tournament organisers used the opening ceremony to pay homage to Kyrgios and Argentine Juan Martin del Potro, who is also mourning the death of his grandfather. The 22-year-old Canberran will now face American Ryan Harrison in the Round of 32 with a possible showdown against tournament favourite Rafael Nadal in the third round. Nadal will have to get through Italian Fabio Fognini in the Round of 32 on Wednesday.

Nadal, seeking a third consecutive clay court title after capturing the Monte Carlo Masters and Barcelona Open, could not face Fognini on Tuesday due to an ear infection. "On Friday I woke up at three in the morning with pain, a discomfort I had never felt before," the 14-time grand slam winner told a news conference on Monday. I went to the doctor and he told me I had an ear infection. It's nothing important but it is bothering me. It has caused me headaches and I've been feeling dizzy," the Spaniard said, via Sydney Morning Herald.

Rafael Nadal vs Nick Kyrgios could be a fascinating battle

When asked about his possible third round showdown against Kyrgios, Nadal said: "The draw isn't ideal but the fact I'm playing at home is a plus. I'm very happy with my start to the year, and not just the clay court season. These have been very good months since I started playing on clay because I've been able to win tournaments after losing finals."

Nadal and Kyrgios are 1-1 in career head-to-head showdowns. As expected, both matches were lengthy tussles. While the young Aussie stunned Nadal in the fourth round of the 2014 Wimbledon, Nadal prevailed in a deciding set in their lone meeting on clay at last year's Rome Masters.

Kyrgios has made a spectacular comeback since his second-round loss at the Australian Open in January. The 21-year-old was met with thunderous boos by his home fans at Melbourne Park for his in-game antics. Since then, Kyrgios has kept his emotions in check, beating World No. 2 Novak Djokovic on two separate occasions besides pushing Roger Federer to a classic five-set contest in the semi-final of the Miami Open at Key Biscayne, Florida. Kyrgios followed that up by leading his country past USA in the Davis Cup quarterfinal.

American tennis great Jim Courier has predicted that Nick Kyrgios could finish the season as a Top-5 ranked player. Several analysts consider him a legitimate threat to the likes of Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murry and Stan Wawrkinka during the remaining three Grand Slams of the year.