World No.2 Rafael Nadal was pleased with second round victory at the Australian Open, with the Spaniard rating the straight sets win over German veteran Tommy Haas as a positive performance.
Nadal got through the match on Rod Laver Arena 6-4 6-3 6-4 on Wednesday without any concern about the knee he felt a crack in on Sunday ahead of his first round match.
He worked hard to get past Haas, a former three-time semi-finalist at Melbourne, and feels like he is making progress with each match.
"I really practiced well. I had very good preparation in my opinion. I practiced very well. I won already two matches in straight sets with positive feeling," he said.
"I am well. You never know. We are in the first week, and every match will be difficult. Next one will not be an exception."
Nadal couldn't quite decide whether his clash with Haas could be classified as tough or not, but thought it was a good test.
"Tough match is when you play five sets. When you play three sets - every match is tough. I cannot say I won easy; for sure not. You cannot expect win easy against nobody, and especially against Tommy Haas," he said.
"He's a fantastic player. That to say, happy to have this strong match early on; I not agree on that. Was a positive match, but not that very strong, demanding. We didn't play four hours and a half, five hours. Three sets, so wasn't that tough, thinking that all the matches is tough."
Nadal's demeanour at this tournament has been as hard to read as his answers would suggest, but he will feel confident ahead of his next match against Lukas Lacko or Donald Young.
Meanwhile, Haas, 33, has admitted that this is likely to be his last Australian Open, with 2012 expected to be his final year on the tour.
He revealed he shared a moment with Nadal over the net, knowing it could be the last time he plays the Spaniard on the big stage.
"I just basically said that this might as well be my last time on Rod Laver Arena. Who knows if I'm back here and who knows if I ever play there again," he said.
"I just said that it's as honour to compete against him, and I wish him well."