Caught on camera: Rafael Nadal cracks head on camera before French Open first-round win

Spanish tennis superstar Rafael Nadal claimed a straight-sets win in the first round of the French Open at Roland Garros, but not before he suffered an embarrassing collision with a courtside camera.

The Spanish star entered the arena for his first-round match with Yannick Hanfmann at the Philippe Chatrier court looking relaxed and confident.

But that calm exterior was briefly interrupted when the Spanish ace caught the corner of a camera as he walked onto the playing surface.

Clearly surprised, Nadal turned to check on what he'd just accidentally collided with before turning and making his way back onto court.

The unexpected clash before play had no effect on Nadal's performance, as he breezed to a 6-2, 6-1, 6-3 victory over Germany's Hanfmann to secure his berth in the second round of the Grand Slam tournament.

Eleven-time French Open champion Nadal is one of the tournament favorites, having captured the title on the famous red clay courts more times than any other player.

RAFAEL NADAL AT THE FRENCH OPEN

• 2005: Champion (defeated Mariano Puerta)
• 2006: Champion (defeated Roger Federer)
• 2007: Champion (defeated Roger Federer)
• 2008: Champion (defeated Roger Federer)
• 2009: Fourth round
• 2010: Champion (defeated Robin Soderling)
• 2011: Champion (defeated Roger Federer)
• 2012: Champion (defeated Novak Djokovic)
• 2013: Champion (defeated David Ferrer)
• 2014: Champion (defeated Novak Djokovic)
• 2015: Quarter-finals
• 2016: Third round
• 2017: Champion (defeated Stan Wawrinka)
• 2018: Champion (defeated Dominic Thiem)

© Reuters / Vincent Kessler

The first of Nadal's 11 French Open titles came in 2005 when he defeated Argentina's Mariano Puerta over four sets in his first-ever tournament at Roland Garros.

He retained his title in 2006 against Roger Federer, then beat the Swiss star twice more in successive finals in 2007 and 2008.

Nadal bettered his run of four straight French Open titles when he won five tournaments in a row between 2010 and 2014.

And he begins his campaign in this year's tournament looking to complete a hat-trick of successive titles at Roland Garros having captured the title in 2017 and 2018.