second round of the Australian Open despite a spirited challenge from Grand Slam debutant Viktor Troicki of Serbia.
The world number two was taken to a tiebreak in the first set and was a break down in the second before he eventually came through 7-6 7-5 6-1.
Nadal joins Andy Roddick and Nikolay Davydenko in the next round.
Sixth seed Roddick beat Czech Lukas Dlouhy 6-3 6-4 7-5, while Davydenko saw off Michael Llodra 7-5 7-5 6-3.
Other seeds that progressed on day one included Richard Gasquet, Tommy Robredo and Mikhail Youzhny.