Rafael Nadal reached the quarter-finals of the Brisbane International with a comfortable 6-1 6-2 win over Australia's Jason Kubler.
The Spanish 22-time Grand Slam champion, playing just his second singles match after almost a year out with injury, was in control throughout.
He broke at the first time of asking and proceeded to secure the win in one hour and 21 minutes.
Nadal will play another Australian, Jordan Thompson, in the last eight.
Wildcard Nadal is using the tournament to prepare for the Australian Open, which starts on 14 January in Melbourne.
The 37-year-old beat Dominic Thiem in the first round and from the moment he broke Kubler to love in the second game, it was hard to see past another Nadal victory.
He broke again in Kubler's second service game and although the Australian showed some fight to get on the board at 5-1 and then force three break points in the following game, Nadal calmly saved the lot and served out the set.
The two-time Australian Open champion was given a time violation for taking too long to return from the toilet between sets but that was as close to adversity as Nadal came at the Pat Rafter Arena.
Kubler was broken to love in the first game of the second set and Nadal - whose power and athleticism appears undiminished after hip surgery - was untroubled as he went on to victory.
The quarter-final will be Nadal's first since Wimbledon in 2022.
BBC