The New Zealander took a year off after winning Olympic gold at Rio 2016 and has been in training with local competition coming from fellow countryman Robert Manson.

Sweden’s Anders Backeus had the fastest start in heat four and managed to maintain a lead through the middle of the race on the regatta course of Linz-Ottensheim. 

But Drysdale showed his skill in the second half of the race and finished first in 6 min 59.310sec.

Manson, the holder of the world best time, won heat three in 6:50.900.

Olympic silver medallist Damir Martin of Croatia finished third in heat five as Norway’s Kjetil Borch took top spot in 6:52.990.

Great Britain’s Harry Leask was sandwiched between them in second.

In the women’s singles sculls, world champion Jeannine Gmelin of Switzerland won heat one with a time of 7:25.640.

Home favourite Magdalena Lobnig was the heat two winner in 7:31.270, while Britain’s Victoria Thornley recorded the fastest time of heat three, 7:32.190.

World champions Grace Prendergast and Kerri Gowler of New Zealand are the crew to beat in the women’s pair and they recorded the fastest qualifying time, 7:00.790.

Compatriots John Storey and Christopher Harris held the same pre-event billing in the men’s double sculls and lived up to that by winning heat one in 6:16.150.

In the men’s four, Australia’s 2017 World Championship-winning crew of Joshua Hicks, Spencer Turrin, Jack Hargreaves and Alexander Hill posted the fastest qualifying time, 5:54.81.

Britain were quickest in the men’s quadruple sculls, 5:42.870, as they look to repeat their win from the first stage of the World Rowing Cup in Belgrade earlier this month.

In a departure from the normal format, the first round of all events were raced as time trials.

This was to allow athletes and officials a chance to test one of the possible contingency scenarios at the Olympic regatta in 2020.

Racing now progresses through repechage and semi-finals to the finals, which will be held across tomorrow and Sunday (June 24).