5/29/2014
5/28/2014
5/26/2014
Rafael Nadal press conference #R1 #RG14
Rafael Nadal: “Important thing is go on court, try your best every day, and try to improve a little bit in every practice day and every match day”
TENNIS 2014 ROLAND GARROS – 26th of May 2014. R. Nadal d. R. Ginepri 6-0, 6-3, 6-0. An interview with Rafael Nadal
Q. How does it feel to get the first one over with, Rafa?
RAFAEL NADAL: Good. I think I played after the first game that was not good, I played a solid first set. I start first six games of the second I didn’t play well, and he had a terrible game with the 3 All, a lot of mistakes. After that I think I started to play a little bit better again.
So in the third I finished the match playing not that good, so it was a solid start, happy for that.
Q. Last year the first couple of rounds for you were a bit tricky. Are you feeling kind of relieved or confident this time your first round was not like…
RAFAEL NADAL: I don’t know. Doesn’t matter, no? In the end it’s day by day not, it’s difficult to compare years, difficult to compare opponents.
Important thing is go on court, try your best every day, and try to improve a little bit in every practice day and every match day, and that’s what they did a lot of times during this tournament. That’s why I had that success, and I gonna try to do it this year.
I think I started a little bit better than last year, but still last year I arrived with a lot of victories on my shoulders, this year with a little bit less.
We’ll see. Important thing is that I am in second round. I won the first one. I have two days for practice, to keep doing the right things and to arrive on the second round hopefully ready to play well.
Q. This is not strictly related to Roland Garros, but how would you describe your relationship with your racquet?
RAFAEL NADAL: I know my racquet since a long time (smiling). No, that’s the best thing that I can say about my racquet is for some reason I am playing with this one.
It’s because I feel the racquet give me what I need for my game and is long, long time ago that I am playing with Babolat, since the age of 10 or 11, I don’t remember. Always Babolat did the best possible for me, trying to help me in what I really need.
I think is great to be part of a great company of Babolat and a great company in the world of tennis. I have a great relationship with them, and that makes the things a little bit easier.
Q. Some people were a bit surprised that you were scheduled on Suzanne Lenglen today. I was wondering if it made any difference to you. Were you expecting to play on Chatrier, or you didn’t really care?
RAFAEL NADAL: Doesn’t really matter a lot. Always playing Roland Garros is a pleasure for me, is a really honor, and is a special feeling. So all the memories at this place give me are unforgettable.
And doesn’t matter if it’s Chatrier or Lenglen or another court, be around here in Roland Garros always gonna be great. And I started in Lenglen this year, is a great court.
I am not sure, but probably next one I gonna play in Chatrier. That’s it.
Q. Can you tell us the whole process in Madrid, in Rome? Your confidence came back. You’re more competitive. Is it because you played quite a lot?
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, Madrid is a Masters 1000, and I didn’t play that much until the final. I lost no set. I think I never played any long match until the final, so this is a tournament during which I didn’t spend that much time on the court.
But after Madrid and mostly after the two first rounds in Rome, which were very difficult with very difficult conditions, with a lot of wind, very cold, I think I started being what I used to be in the past and playing the way I used to play in the past.
My game was back, much better than during my first tournaments on clay. Had it been possible, had I been in a position to use my shots in Madrid or in Rome or in Barcelona, the process would have been far less complex for me.
And maybe I would come here with slightly more confidence. But I think the beginning of the season on clay was positive.
And with regards to my feelings here with regards to what other people tell me when they see me, watching, I think I’m fit, but you want to come to Paris having played well in the other tournaments.
Q. Coming back to Madrid, you said that Berdych was hitting his balls very high and that you had difficulties returning and you also complained about the sun, the lack of sun, about the cold.
RAFAEL NADAL: Yeah, it’s true. The sun, either you have too much of it or not enough of it. But when it’s very hot and there is not much wind, the court is much faster. That helps me quite a lot.
I’m not trying to find any excuses. That’s tennis. We want to talk about tennis. We are here because we love tennis. And when the ball does not go as far as I want it to go, I’m the only one to blame. Maybe it’s because at one stage I was not running fast enough or maybe I was not strong enough on my legs. Had I run faster, I would have had more time to position myself, to position my arm, and return better.
Of course I have ups and downs, just like any player, and we all have in this sport. But I also managed to play very good games in Rome. The matches were very difficult, but the conditions were nightmarish, really. It was very difficult to play in these conditions.
But after that, I think I played very well when I played Murray. There was less wind. The weather was slightly warmer. Against Dimitrov it was at night with wind. Not as cold as during my match against Simon, but I managed to return deeper. I was calmer. I could position myself much better on the court.
And when the ball arrived, I could return it not taking too many risks. I did that and I felt I could not attack, I managed to play safely and create some difficulties for my opponent.
It’s always very difficult to win against him, but I think I played well. Today it’s true that the court was very heavy. The balls were very heavy, very wet.
I had a question, why don’t they dry the court before we start playing? The court is soaked with water. Why don’t they do anything?
Well, anyway, there are moments when I played better today. Others when my let game was not all that good, when I couldn’t run as much as I should have. But that’s the way it is.
5/24/2014
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5/17/2014
5/16/2014
5/14/2014
5/12/2014
5/11/2014
5/10/2014
Rafa #Nadal #QF press conf. transcript
Rafael Nadal
MADRID, SPAIN
R. NADAL/T. Berdych
6‑4, 6‑2
6‑4, 6‑2
THE MODERATOR: Questions in Spanish, please.
Q. First of all, congrats for the great match. Just wanted to say 3‑2, 30‑Love you were both playing really well. From there on, 3 games for Berdych. Was that the key of the match?
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, of course the first set is always very important, especially when it's an even set. I think that I wasn't playing bad, but it's always tough at the beginning. It's always difficult.
It was a match with a lot of intensity, and perhaps it was my toughest match until now in the tournament. I knew that I had to go a step forward. I think that talking about my level, I did it pretty well. I played pretty well during a long time.
Perhaps then I was down a little bit, but I knew it was a different match. It's true the first two opponents I had, Pico or Nieminen, they were two opponents that if I do things more or less correctly, his game isn't going to be negative for me Mo because I'm going to have a lot of rhythm.
I managed to save a break point at the beginning of the match, and also I saved another Love‑30, so I think that in the key moments I played really well. I'm happy for that.
In general, I think overall it's a more complete match that I did. I managed to play with the same energy, the same intensity, and I think that during the match I was levelling up.
I'm happy for that. To make it to the semifinals for first time in the clay season here in Madrid is great news for me.
Q. Was it very hot out there? Normally you play at the night. What did you think about the match today? Is it a matter of TV?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, no, normally in Madrid I always play at this time. It's not a matter of TV. For me, no problem at all. I like to play with sun, too. I would rather play with sun at night, and especially when I play on a clay court. It's more natural.
Well, it was pretty hot out there. I think that in this case it's even worse for the audience than the players because it's hot. But it's not very humid. Even though I sweat an awful lot.
But we don't have here the heat that you can have perhaps in Miami, which can be heavier. Here it's hot, but it is something you can cope with.
Q. I wanted to ask you to talk about the characteristic of Giraldo. Evaluate his moment right now.
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, he's been doing well in two tournaments, two in a row with very positive matches on his side. He's a player that has a high speed of ball. Normally I think that he's a player that plays a little bit disorganized but with really good drive and return.
So he's a dangerous player.
Q. Recently we saw you play a lot with your backhand. I don't know if you don't feel comfortable with your forehand. Can you explain that?
RAFAEL NADAL: You know, all my life I have been playing with my backhand. More than normally, you know. No, I don't think so.
I think that my game is good when I do my drive. When I do five or six backhands, my game is not as good, especially on clay court. On the clay court you have to play with your drive. You have the possibilities to open the match.
Well, in Monte‑Carlo, I played very little with my drive. I played a lot with my backhand. It's something that we talked about. I have to play more with my drive. I'm still lacking a little bit of that, a little bit more automatic position that I used to have. I should have more space, because sometimes I don't have that space.
In general, I think it did pretty well. My shots were working and my backhand is okay. I think it hasn't been a problem. I think that I've had a problem of legs rather than of backhand. I think that my backhand has been pretty good in all the clay tournaments.
It's not that I cover my backhand because I don't feel comfortable. During all the clay season I've been pretty comfortable with my backhand. But to play well in clay, you have to have really good passing shots.
Q. Yesterday we were talking to Giraldo and he was talking about important tennis in Colombia. The ATP 500 tournament was in Rio and you were there. Seems that the ATP is trying to grow in Latin America. Would you agree that a Masters 1000 should be played there?
RAFAEL NADAL: It's not that I'm looking forward to it. I will really support it. Tennis is a global sport. It's important that it's equal all over the globe.
Also, it's a reality that the matches have to be played and the tournaments have to be played where the audience really lives and feels the sport. My personal feeling is that each time I go to Latin America, the response of the audience over there is unbelievable.
I can't remember any matches that I've played in Latin America that the court was not up to its fullest. It was really crowded. So that's great news for our sport.
They are continually growing. They might have had some problems in the past concerning security. Perhaps they're now less, not so problematic.
Think that the ATP should go for that situation and really make more tournaments there in Latin America.
But as always, we know the changes and the innovations in our organization are complex.
Q. What would be your expectation for the rest of the tournament? What do you think is your best scenario for the semifinals?
RAFAEL NADAL: My expectation is to be good for tomorrow and to play a great match and to try to make it to the final. There is no more expectation than that.
I just managed to go over a barrier in the quarterfinals with a complex opponent. I've been two weeks without doing that and I'm happy for that. Now I just need to do an extra effort. I have to keep on going on the line that I've been going, which is each day a little bit better.
You know, today I'm feeling very satisfied. I'm very happy for the way that I managed. I feel happy with the way I've managed to win today with a very complicated opponent.
You know, the fact of playing in Madrid is always very special for me. Being able to make it once again to the semifinals is a great news, as I said before. It's a very positive news for me, and also looking forward.
Q. You're saying that you're very satisfied and happy. Perhaps the best news is that you've been pretty consistent.
RAFAEL NADAL: The best news is that I play well. That's the best news, I think.
I think that I've done a lot of things that I've done well historically during a lot of years on this surface. I think I've done them again today.
So I've played really good shots; I've been able to win two break points with two passing shots, very complicated shots. I took the opportunity that I had on the break points.
I managed to solve the opportunities that he had with my serve because I think I played bravely and aggressively. After that, I managed to have a regular game without committing many errors and having the initiative in the point whenever I could.
When I couldn't, I was just defending, trying to recover. I was moving pretty well covering the court. I wasn't feeling that the court was too big for me as perhaps could happen in other moments.
I feel that I was in good position on the court. Those are all the things that led me to a good result on this surface.
Of course there are always things I can do better, but I think I've gone a very important step forward.
Q. You were talking about Brazil and the crowd over there, saying that they support you and that the court is very full. What do you say about the people here in Madrid? The court with you is pretty full, but with other players it's not as crowded, like with Giraldo.
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, in my case I have only the feeling when I'm not court. When I'm on the court, the support of the crowd is simply amazing, it's brutal.
It's one of the places where I go out there in the court and I feel the most loved, the most supported in the world. So for me, whenever I go out to play here in Madrid in any kind of situation, it's a really good feeling.
You know, I feel very emotional and I really want to play well here. The energy these people give me here it's really hard to find in other places.
In the end, it's also really hot here on this court. There is a lot of the metal out here. The people don't leave, but they're just looking for shade and trying not to be so hot and all the time on the court.
So it's tough for them, too.
Q. You were talking about the tennis in Latin America. On the calendar there are a lot of things. What would you do? Would you substitute one of the current tournaments we have? Do you think that the market is very saturated? How would you do it?
RAFAEL NADAL: You know, I left the council of players because of something a long time ago. In politics there has been a long time that I've not been there, and it's not going to be now when I go back in.
When I was in there I saw a few solutions. That's when I left. So being out of it, you know, it doesn't worry me a lot. It shouldn't worry you. Shouldn't worry you my opinion or my solution because I'm not there. We should ask the people that have the power to change these things.
I don't know that other people have the power, but it would be great to have a Masters 100 in Latin America.
THE MODERATOR: Questions in English.
Q. Yesterday you said that after your win that you played about an hour of what you thought was your best tennis for the past couple of weeks. You struggled a little bit to close out the match. Do you feel that you were playing at your best throughout the whole match today and were able to close it out?
RAFAEL NADAL: I played probably the most solid match during the whole clay season, because it's true that in the first round I played well after the 4‑1 in the first set; in the second round I played well for almost one hour, you know, 6‑1, 3‑Love playing at the very good level.
Today I was playing with very positive energy during the whole match and increasing the level as the match went on. So I am very proud and happy the way I managed the situation today. I made an important improvement about personal feelings and talking. Happy for that.
Tomorrow is another history. Always the feet close to the floor. Every day is different history, and I know that the things can change.
But victory like today improve my confidence.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
5/09/2014
Rafa #Nadal #R3 Press Conf Transcript
May 8, 2014
Rafael Nadal
MADRID, SPAIN
R. NADAL/J. Nieminen
6‑1, 6‑4
6‑1, 6‑4
THE MODERATOR: Questions in Spanish, please.
Q. For the quarterfinals match, Tomas Berdych. It's been a long time since the last time he beat you. In Rome, 2013, 2‑0 for you. What are you expecting from him tomorrow? It's going to be in the morning, so we'll see.
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, in the morning, I think it's going to be at 3:00. On the your time, right?
Well, it's always the same thing: I think that Berdych today played an important match. He beat Dimitrov when he came from playing really well. Dimitrov is also doing very well, and that's a lot of merit for Berdych.
I saw the first set. I saw a little bit of the second, one but not a lot because I was getting ready. He's a very dangerous player on every single surface. Here even more with the altitude. The ball flies very fast and the serve is very difficult to break.
My goal is to try to be aggressive. I know that to play against him I don't have to leave many spaces on the court. If he strikes the ball in comfortable positions I'm nearly dead, because he has a really high ball speed.
And I have to try to see what he does a little bit better. Maybe his movement is not as good. You know, perhaps when I'm good and a little bit stronger than him on that side moving from side to side on the court.
But all the rest, it's really difficult to stop him if you're not on your best level. Today I did a good match. During perhaps an hour I played at a really high level. Also, it's true that after that I didn't play such a high level. I had something in my head.
Q. What do you think, you will lift the trophy on Sunday or Real Madrid wins the 1oth Champions League on the 24th?
RAFAEL NADAL: Real Madrid just needs to win a match, and over here I have to win three matches. It's easier that Real Madrid wins the Champions League.
They have days to go, and I have only hours in front of me before my next match. And that's are we have. I have to be ready. It's an important match for me. I have been two weeks losing in the quarterfinals, so let's see what happens.
Hopefully I can make it to the semifinals. I hope that I have the energy and the intensity required to be able to play against Tomas since the beginning in a proper way.
I hope that the fact that I'm playing at home it's going to be an extra help.
Q. I want to talk a little bit about your answer. Last thing you said before about the good timing that you had to play on the court. Perhaps you played your best match on clay. Today you said you were playing well, but you said at the end of the match you had something on your mind. Was that a good thing or not?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, no, whatever you have on your mind, it's not a good thing. Completely opposite. It's true that during the first hour I played better than yesterday, more dynamically and with more intensity. I knew what I was doing with each ball with no surprises.
I was defending properly and knowing what was happening in every single moment. I could defend properly. Perhaps that's something I wasn't able to do in the last weeks. Perhaps today with more energy and I was more dynamic than before.
So I think I did that pretty well today. After that, well, when I was attacking I was doing it properly with no anticipation. I wasn't going for the winner straightaway, but always having the initiative of the point.
When I was saying with no surprises, well, I was saying that if the ball came long, then the ball came long. If I wanted to do a short ball, I did a short ball. Things I didn't do last week.
For example, last weeks if I wanted to play a long ball I maybe put it in the net. So those are things that get you out of the court.
Perhaps today things were more controlled than other days. That builds confidence for you whenever you're moving and playing very well. Those margins of error give you confidence without having to go behind the tramlines a lot to win the point.
Q. When you said you had something on your mind, what are you talking about?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, that I committed some errors and didn't play with the intensity that I was at the beginning. I don't know how many unforced errors I made after the 2‑0 in the first set or something like that, or 2‑0, 3‑0. I think very few. I think I didn't commit nearly any unforced errors.
I would like to know how many I committed, but I felt I hardly committed any errors. You know, when you're for a long time without missing anything, sometimes you cancommit an error that I shouldn't.
You know, I've done it in two consecutive games, one with his serve. I committed perhaps some errors one after the other. Perhaps another one also with my serve I committed some consecutive errors.
So, you know, he cannot go 3‑2 when I have such a good dynamic. I have to go ahead again. When I am 3‑1 I have to be 4‑1, not 3‑2.
After that, another game which I think I should have done the break at 4‑3. That was a complicated moment because we were 3‑3. I think that was the moment to go back in and break again, and I started with a good point and then I think I committed two errors.
So I think what i have to avoid in order to be competitive, in order to play well against the player that I have now.
Q. Accepting that your two opponents have been very hard, do you think tomorrow's match is really a test to see if you're playing better?
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, instead of a test, it's just another important match. Perhaps it's the most difficult of all week without any doubts. I think I'm playing against the 6th in the world? 5th? Where he is?
Q. 6th.
RAFAEL NADAL: 6th. Well, you know, he's a player that has been playing really well. He made it to the semifinals in Australia, he won in Rotterdam I think, and he's a player that has a capacity to play at the maximum level.
I don't know if it's an exam, but it is a big test. We have to be ready to face it with the proper attitude. We have to be mentally strong for the moments that we have out there, because there'll be complicated moments.
It's never going to be an easy match. It's going to be very equal, I hope. We just have to be ready to assume that and to keep on playing bravely.
Q. Last time that he beat you was here in Madrid in 2006. Can you remember anything of the feelings that you had back then? Do you remember something of that match?
RAFAEL NADAL: In 2006? Yeah, sure. Of course I do.
It's not a match that I have good feelings about because it was a lot of years ago. It's the past. It was one of the few times I had problems inside a court in my life.
It's the past. All of us learn with the years. Me the first, and nothing. I think that tomorrow's match has nothing to do with what happened in 2006. It's a completely different history, different surface.
Unfortunately we're pretty old now.
Q. The match against Pico was a little bit short. This one was a little bit longer. Do you think you have good rhythm here with the altitude in order to have a victory tomorrow?
RAFAEL NADAL: Tomorrow at 5:00 or 6:00 I'll let you know. I don't know what can happen in the future. Only thing I know is that I won two matches, which is always important.
I've won them more or less with continuity, which is also positive. Now the complicated part of the match comes. You have to go the step forward and play happily and bravely and I think with determination.
This is what I have to do if I want to have options.
THE MODERATOR: Questions in English.
Q. Congratulations today. Your analysis of the match today? It was going pretty well in the first set and he pushed you in the second set. Did you always feel in control of the match today?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, no. When you are 4‑All and breakpoint for the opponent you are not in control always. But it's true that for one hour probably I was playing the best tennis that I played for the last three weeks.
One of the first days that I felt that I was doing with the ball what I really want to do. So that's a very positive thing.
And the negative thing is in the match I had an opportunity to close the match with great feelings and I made few mistakes in a row. That makes the match more complicated. I gave the opportunity to Jarkko to play more aggressive and with more determination.
For me it was a mistake to give him that option because I had the match completely under control with 6‑1, 3‑0. Tomorrow is another is history against one of the best players in the world. I need to be at my 100% to have any chance.
I am going to try. I know I have to play better and better every day if I want to have chances.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
5/08/2014
Rafael Nadal
MADRID, SPAIN
R. NADAL/J. Monaco
6‑1, 6‑0
6‑1, 6‑0
THE MODERATOR: Questions in Spanish, please.
Q. First of all, congratulations. I want to talk to you about the people that are not playing here. Djokovic and Federer; Wawrinka left. Do you think there is a favorite, apart from Nishikori and Ferrer and you to win here this year? I think that Murray-Isner is a little bit complicated.
RAFAEL NADAL: Favorite, as I always say, is whoever lifts the trophy. That's the favorite. There are candidates, and in the end it's you, the ones who care about that and you have to write about that.
We don't care. We go day after day and we know that all the matches are complicated. Every day you have to be out there with all your senses. When you come off a winning streak you see things differently. When you've lost a few matches, maybe things are a little bit more complicated.
So you just have to think on each point, match after match, and then see if things just work out. And in the final we'll see what happens. We will see who's playing better. Let's see who can be there for the final rounds.
Q. Your friend and opponent Monaco was really angry with the umpire. Do you think that that was something that affected him?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, I don't know if that affected him. Whenever you have a distraction sometimes you don't play as well. It doesn't help.
Well, as I said, in the end he was a little bit angry. For example, the time he was taking too much time, I understand that after that point it was not a time to give a warning.
You know, after all, it seemed that the ones that rule here don't want to seewhat people like to see. People like to see that the points are fights and they have long rallies. I'm not making things up.
I just see what people applaud out there. People rarely applaud an ace; people don't really applaud a serve. People applaud normally long rallies. That's what they like.
The points where the abilities are there, where you're suffering, that's what people like. The points that normally we face the limits, that's what people like to see.
It seems that those up there that are ruling don't like that. They're looking at a game where you don't have to think, where you have to play ping‑pong really fast, one shot after another one. I think that's not the sport.
So I understand that Juan was getting angry when he had a warning after a long point. He was running from one side to another. He needs to recover to continue giving a good performance. That's what happens. That's my feeling.
I already told you last year when this rule came into the game and it was a little more strict, what I do is try to adapt myself and play. I just do what they say. But my opinion is different to what we have out there.
Q. How did you feel out there? Did you need that victory to start with here?
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, I don't know what I needed. Of course I needed to win to have positive feelings. I think I had it. Maybe I started out a little bit nervous during the first game. It's logical after losing a match that the next match, the beginning is always tough whenever you've lost.
Yesterday it happened to David. The points are a little bit more complicated at the beginning.
But it's also true that since I've was able to break and confirm the break with my serve when I was 4‑1 up, I think I was playing at a really good level. Perhaps one of my best levels on clay from the 4‑1 to the 6‑1, and then in the end of the match.
Sincerely I think I moved better and played well, better than I normally play on the clay. I was dominating over the points and playing very well. I think I've done positive things.
That's the most important thing. I go step by step. You know, I don't go from zero to 100. I go step by step. I think I've been playing better than I played in Barcelona.
I lost this match that I think I should have won, as I said. This week I have another opportunity to try to play well. I started pretty well, and tomorrow I have another match. We just have to be prepared for it.
Q. I want to ask you about the people that are not playing here. Do you think that the tournament has lost intensity or energy because we don't have Wawrinka, Federer, Djokovic, in comparison to other years?
RAFAEL NADAL: I understand that for the tournament it's always better that all the top players are here. Wawrinka was here but he simply lost. This is what happens in sport. You are here and you lost. It's true that important people are not playing here, Djokovic and Roger. I'm sorry for the tournament. I'm sorry for Novak.
You know, whenever you don't feel well, it's really tough to say no to a tournament like this. It's never an easy decision.
I just have to say congrats to Federer because he's a dad once again. I think it's a complete different situation, the one of Federer to Novak's. It's much more complicated, Novak's complication, rather than Federer. Federer is something really happy. For Novak is something really bad.
In my case, I'm just playing here at home with lots of intensity, and I don't care if Novak, Federer, or Wawrinka are not in the draw. I just look at my side of the draw, and I have to be ready for my next match.
I know that you are thinking further, but it's very positive for the tournament and all the fans that all these players are here.
Q. After the matches that you've lost, does this generate in you tranquility? Do you have a different dynamic? Does it affect you, especially in the breakpoints out there? Do you feel it or not?
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, no, it's the first match. As always, afterwards you have to go over those barriers that you might have whenever you lose your confidence.
In Barcelona I had the opportunity to go over that barrier, and I think I was a little bit unlucky. Well, I'm always saying that I don't believe in luck, but I had the opportunities to end that game in the second set and I didn't do that.
Now I have to do things right here in Madrid, and today's match will help me play a little bit more calm. I have another opportunity and I have to go for it. I am moving well, and tomorrow I'm a little bit more calm, as I say, with a little bit more security as I went out today.
Because each victory pulls you up, levels you up. Barcelona I started pretty bad. In the second round I played better. With Almagro I started playing really well. After that I lost. I didn't go for any opportunities and ended up playing really well.
We could see that at the end of the match. We'll see once again. I'm quite happy about the things that I've been doing well in training, the things I did before the match. I've done good things.
Well, talking about being calm, it's something that you have to live with. Whenever you win, you can also be not so calm. When you don't win, of course you're more nervous.
It may be a little bit more tougher to go over the barrier that was talking about. Also, I know from experience in my career that you don't go from here to here.
So you just have inertia, small things you have to change and they come out naturally. I just have to do it. I think today in the second set, the end of the first, I've done it pretty well.
Tomorrow I have another opportunity to play well. I'll try to continue playing at tournament and we will see what happens. Because I also have a difficult opponent tomorrow.
THE MODERATOR: Questions in English.
Q. You've played a lot of big matches in your career. Did you just feel a little extra nerves out there today and wanting to play well in front of your home crowd?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, I never felt an extra pressure for playing at home. It was not this case. Always is a motivation play in Spain. Always that give me the positive feeling. Sometimes when people play at home they feel pressure. I never felt that way when I'm playing at home.
So I felt a little bit nervous, because at the end I felt that I was playing well. But you come back to the competition after losing a match that I felt that I had to win in Barcelona, so always at the beginning it's normal to have some nerves.
Important thing is to accept that, fight, and try to pace yourself and find your rhythm again, and it happened.
THE MODERATOR: Questions in Spanish.
Q. You have achieved your 654th victory. That's over Arthur Ashe. What do you think about that?
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, in this case I always say that these things, you have to analyze them when you're done with your career, not when you're in the middle of your career.
You know, Ashe was a fantastic man in our sport. Well, it's not something that was planned or that he knew, so all merit for what he did. As I said, he was a very important person in our sport.
In this case for me, you know, no matter how many victories I've had, I'm very happy that I can be compared to him. You know, to be to the level of some people like this, it's always a great satisfaction for me.
Q. I am from Argentina. Monaco, I was just with him, and he said that he received a great lesson from your side. On Twitter, he just posted a phrase for you saying that you're going to charge him Argentinian pesos for the lesson that you taught him?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, we're friends. You know, I played pretty well. I think that he had an opportunity at the beginning of the match and didn't go for it. He started with a break, and maybe that could have put him up a little bit.
Then when I recover from a that breakpoint, a couple good points from 2‑0, to 2‑1, he committed a fer errors and then I was up 3‑1. That was very decisive at the end of the match.
You know, these are matches that the results say it, but you never know if at the end things are different. Something else could have happened. You know, just all the support to Pico. I think he hasn't gone through easy situations. He's one of my best friends on the tour without any doubts.
Apart from being a good friend, he's a really good person. So really the best to him and really good luck for his next events.
Q. (In English.) Out of all the other tournaments on clay, not including Roland Garros, does playing in Madrid make this one more special than the others for you?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, it's not fair if I answer that yes. It's always more special when you are playing at home. Talking about the crowd, talking about the feeling that play in front of your people.
But talking about the tournament, it would not be fair if I say‑‑ I will not say the true if I say that for me is more special for me play here than in Monte‑Carlo, Rome, or Barcelona. They are historic tournaments, too.
I say the same: The crowd is more special here, and the chance to play in front of the Spanish crowd, Madrid crowd, was always very special for me.
Yes it is different. But talking about the tournament, for me all the tournaments are the same. All tournaments are very, very important for me.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
5/07/2014
5/05/2014
Rafa #Nadal pré-tournament press Conf transcript #Madrid 4/5/2014
THE MODERATOR: Questions in Spanish, please.
Q. I would like to know how do you feel towards the tournament? What are your feelings on the court?
RAFAEL NADAL: Good. You know, I still have two days. I think I play on Wednesday. Still have tomorrow and the day after for training. I've been training every day. I think I'm more or less happy with what I've done.
Each day I've been training a little bit better. We have to wait, and afterwards I have to compete well. That's what matters. What happens on the previous day, the only thing it is for is to help you to be a little bit more calm in order to face the tournament properly.
Afterwards, the important thing is once you're out there in the match, you see what you're able to do. I feel well, so I'm feeling happy, if that's what you're asking.
Q. You're in a little bit weird month because it's been a time that you didn't go in Monte‑Carlo on a Friday, Barcelona you left on a Friday. You've got a lot of the time to rest. Do you think that's good for Madrid?
RAFAEL NADAL: No. It's not good for me. The good thing is when you've been winning it's good for you. You have momentum and you can keep doing things well.
Well, when you lose, you have a hard moment, you havemore doubts. Well, yes, I have a little bit time. I need more time to move, choose where to strike the ball.
But no, no, that's what happened. I've already said it several times. I didn't pretend to win Monte‑Carlo 12 times or Barcelona 12 times. Maybe that may not be normal. This is the reality of the situation.
Maybe it's normal to lose three times on the quarterfinals. Maybe what's not normal is what happened during the past nine years.
But we'll be here to fight and to try to play even better. I don't think I have to change many things. I think I can change very small things, and the change can be quite drastic and quite big.
That's what I'm working on right now.
Q. These small changes that you're talking about, what do you think they are? What are the changes you're talking about?
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, they're pretty simple. In the end, tennis doesn't have a lot of capacity of analysis. It's not a really complicated sport. It's pretty simple. I have to move a little bit better on the court. I have to be better in my drive with a little bit more decision.
I think the backhand, I've been doing it pretty well. I just need a little bit more authority when I've been training with my drive. Just a little bit more authority on my drive. The backhand was working well. If I work on my drive well, the backhand is going to be better on its own.
I just need to win. I think that in Barcelona I had a good opportunity. I think I was pretty close. I think that in many moments I deserved to do it, but that tennis is a fair game. The game all the time was on my side.
So, you know, I was playing‑‑ my attitude was pretty well. So I think I cannot have a better attitude than what I had in Monte‑Carlo, for example. The attitude I wanted to win in Monte‑Carlo, it's not something about wanting ir or not wanting it. It's about momentum. I'm feeling better.
I feel really good to play here. It's a very special tournament for me, and the energy this tournament gives me is something a little bit different to others.
I've been training trying to do things properly, as I've been doing always. I hope that it just works out.
Q. I don't know what does Madrid have, but in the past editions nobody managed to win the title again. In your case you could do it this time. You have a third opportunity. Do you think it's because people normally don't win twice?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, no, it's not because of nothing. To repeat is really difficult in every single place. We're talking about tournaments we have the top players every single year. It's obvious when the best players are working. It's really tough that the same guy wins from year to year.
You look at the history of our sport, it's something that be doesn't happen very often in our sport. It's true the last few years some players have been winning tournaments year after year.
If we look at the history we can see that few players have been able to do this year after year, and that just shows how difficult the sport is in general.
In this case, in tennis, many matches are decided in a small points. Well, sometimes the balls always fall on the side of a guy. It's something special that has happened several times during the past years.
It's happened several times for some players, but it's not very logical. It's not very logical what happens in the last five, six years that the same players have been playing for the really important tournaments.
This can happen three times, but during so many years it's something pretty different. I think that these things don't happen many times during the history.
Q. I would like to talk about your defeat in Australia. What did that leave on you? Physically talking because a problem in your back that you couldn't train for a week, or mentally because of the fact of not being able to win?
RAFAEL NADAL: The defeat in Australia is the past. We don't have to talk anymore about Australia. It's gone. We will go back in 2015 to try to be well there again and try to compete well in Australia.
Just another defeat with a problem. That maybe leaves you afterwards a little bit more insecurity to that loss. Because you always have that moment that you're just dreaming about it and then you have a problem.
But this is sport. You know, the sport is just to accept, to feel done, and wake up again and stand up and try to recover.
You know, when you compete at this level, when you're playing at the limit, sometimes you crash. You crash against the wall.
All the crashes you get during your career, you just have to survive. You just to have try not to be a mortal kick. I don't think that's the case in Australia.
After Australia it's been a little bit difficult for me to get back in the rhythm for the competition, but also there are some other things over there.
In Australia where I was playing well, after Australia I stop for three weeks, then I played Rio. Even though I win Rio, I didn't play with really good feelings. I played the tournament, but doesn't matter. In the middle I have to leave because they have to treat my back, put something on my back, syringes.
That happened in Rio and then I cannot train after 12 days. So, you know, there I was a little bit close. And all of this in general, well you create‑‑ you need continuity in order to play well.
In Indian Wells I managed to play well against Dolgopolov. I tried to win that match. These things happen.
We went over it and just have to work on it. You have to start from zero.
In Miami, was that really positive tournament for me.
Afterwards, I lost two matches here in Spain and I think I could have won.
Ferrer was much better than me, especially in the second set. The first set was really close. I think it's a match that I should have won, but I didn't.
In this case I have to work for here, for Madrid. That's what I've been doing. I been working since I lost in Barcelona. I tried to train well to come here. If things don't come out well, we will go to Rome; if things don't work out there, we will go to Paris.
That's everything. You have to continue and continue and continue, and think that things are going to work out for you. That's what I'm going to try to do all of these days.
Q. These two defeats, do they create on you more doubts?
RAFAEL NADAL: You know, they create you doubts. That's what happens in the defeat. That's why if someone tells you the opposite he is lying to you. The defeats create doubts. Not more be will to play. What creates will to play is that you're feeling well on the court.
When you come from tough moments like this or injuries or whatever, you don't manage to be on the positive line, well, you know, you then come back with a little more intensity to try to be back as soon as possible.
I just to have try to be back on that line. That's what I'm trying to do right now.
Q. Two questions: Who do you prefer to avoid for the quarterfinals, Tomas Berdych or Grigor Dimitrov? And are you going to go tonight to watch Real Madrid? On the 24th are you going to Lisbon?
RAFAEL NADAL: I wish that I make it to the quarterfinals. If I have someone to play with that will be great news, because that means that I'm on the court, too.
Tonight I'm going to go to the stadium. To Lisbon, no, I'm not going to go to Lisbon. Thank you, bye.
THE MODERATOR: Questions in English?
Q. Are you surprised to see Andy Murray ranked No. 8? And you know what it's like to recover from injuries. Do you think he'll be able to come back after his back surgery and get back to the top of the game?
RAFAEL NADAL: You know, the ranking is lying a lot of times. The ranking is not fair a lot of times. Having one year ranking when you get injury for a while, when you lose just a few tournaments or you have some problems and you are not able to play your 100%, it's very easy to lose ranking.
So it's not an issue for a player Andy that already won Olympics, Grand Slam, Masters 1000s. The ranking probably is not his priority. It's to play well and have the chance to win the most important tournaments and feel himself healthy and competitive.
I don't have any doubt that he's fighting again for the best tournaments of the world. It's always natural and normal that after an injury it's tough to be back on the top of your game very soon.
So for me, it's not an issue. He's there. He will be fighting for the best tournaments and he will be in the top positions of the ranking if he wants to be or if he's able to do.
When you get injury and you have some physical problems and you are not able to play all the tournaments at your 100%, then I repeat: having the ranking just one year on the calendar, you know, it's not enough to be at the top if you were not able to play all the tournaments at your 100%.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports
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