Roger Federer has won 11 clay-court titles in his career, with his last on the surface coming in Istanbul in 2015
Roger Federer's first match on clay in almost three years ended with a rapid win over France's Richard Gasquet at the Madrid Open.
The Swiss, 37, took 53 minutes to win 6-2 6-3 against the world number 39.
Gasquet, playing his first tournament of the year following a groin injury, did not look fully fit.
Nevertheless, the 20-time Grand Slam champion was at his ruthless best, delighting a mesmerised Caja Magica with a majestic display.
"It's been a special night for me to come back and play here," fourth seed Federer said.
"I was very calm all day waiting for the match, sometimes nerves can come up when you're waiting all day but only felt them when I started talking about tactics.
"They went away and I played a great match."
Federer was making his return to the red dirt for the first time since losing to Austria's Dominic Thiem at the 2016 Rome Masters, having missed that year's French Open with a back injury and sitting out the past two clay-court swings to preserve his body.
The Swiss is a three-time champion in Madrid and received a huge ovation from the Caja Magica crowd, which included Brazilian footballing great Ronaldo, when he arrived on the court.
And the Madrid fans - many of whom perhaps thought they would not see Federer here again - noisily rose to their feet again after he wrapped up a straightforward win.
Tougher tests will come for the 2009 French Open champion, who goes on to meet France's Gael Monfils or Hungarian Marton Fucsovics, however.
Gasquet was playing his first tournament since October and instantly came under pressure in his opening service game, handing over the break with a framed backhand.
The Frenchman looked ponderous and awkward at times, but shook off some early nerves with an overhead to get on the board for 3-1.
Successive drop shots from the baseline gave Federer a set point after just 23 minutes - and left the crowd purring - as the Swiss broke again when Gasquet could not execute a drop shot of his own.
The second set was a much tighter contest, Gasquet holding serve until 4-3, when Federer pounced again to move within a hold of the match and then clinch a routine win.
