Former world no 1 Rafael Nadal showed flashes of his top form under the lights at Arthur Ashe Stadium to beat young Croat Borna Coric 6-3 6-2 4-6 6-4 at the US Open.
The first two sets saw vintage performances from Nadal, who has dropped to world No 8 in what has been a lacklustre season for the 29-year-old Spaniard.
He is fighting to keep alive a 10-year streak of winning at least one grand slam title.
The 14-times major winner Nadal schooled the 18-year-old Coric over the first two sets. But Coric responded with his best tennis and broke the Spaniard in the 10th game of the third set to send the match to a hard-fought fourth set.
The Spaniard finally prevailed thanks to a service break on a forehand service return winner in the seventh game.
'It's a very happy moment for me,' said Nadal, returning to Flushing Meadows for the first time since his 2013 triumph after missing last year with a wrist injury.
'Last year was very hard not having chance to being back in one of my favorite tournaments.'
The win allowed Nadal to avenge a 6-2 7-6 loss to Coric last year at Basel in his only previous encounter with the up-and-coming Coric.
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