Rafael Nadal will begin his bid for the Beijing title when he opens against Di Wu on Tuesday. First-round action also features John Isner vs. Dominic Thiem.

(WC) Di Wu vs. (3) Rafael Nadal

Nadal hopes to right the wrongs of a tough 2015 campaign as he kicks off the finishing fall swing at the China Open on Tuesday. The former world No. 1’s slippery slide down the rankings continued when Kuala Lumpur champion David Ferrer passed him for No. 7 on Monday, relegating his fellow Spaniard to eighth. Nadal is a decent 45-15 for the season but he owns just three titles and none have come at anything more than a 500-point event (two of the 250-point variety).

Up first for the No. 3 seed on Tuesday in Beijing is Wu, whom he has never faced. Wu registers at 230th in the world and obviously needed a wild card…