Rafa #Nadal press conference after his victory over Andy Murray (Transcript)

Q. That's the highest-ranked player you've beaten since the French Open last year. How proud are you of the win?
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, is an important victory obviously because that put me in a good position to try to be in the semifinals, and at the same time I have a big day against a great player in a tough surface.

I just happy the way that I play today, happy the way I working, as I say the other day. Just another step for me be able to play at that level against such a great player is good news. Happy for that. Just want to try to keep working the same way to keep confirming that I am in the completely right direction.

Q. You've talked in recent weeks about the rest of this year being about getting yourself in perfect shape for next year. What does a victory like this mean for you going into next year?
RAFAEL NADAL: The victories are important because at the end of the day that's confidence on the things that you are doing off court, no, outside of the competition. I know I am in the right way, as I said, since Montréal. I am playing much better, practicing very well, practicing a lot. Then you need results to confirm that.

But I am quite confident when I feel that I am finding that direction, that way, on my practices, that sooner or later the positive results can arrive. So I believe that the last four tournaments, the positive results, the good feelings on court in terms of enjoying myself, in terms of image, is much better. That's important for me because I know I worked to find the level that I am today.

But is just the beginning. I need to keep working so hard to try to keep going the same way. Not everything going to be like this. As I said the other day, when you come back from a period like I had, is like this, is like this. But the line is very positive, no? So happy for that. And obviously is an important victory for me and important day.

Q. Are you surprised that it's indoors that you get your confidence back when it was not always your cup of tea?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, indoor is a little bit more difficult, but not impossible. When I am playing well, I think I have been competitive in all the surfaces. But is true that always have been little bit tougher to play well on indoors than outdoors. At the same time I played lot of tournaments very bad in outdoors this year.

So is good to finish the year with this positive energy. I hope remain at least hopefully two more matches here. I hope to finish the year with that positive feeling, that positive energy, keep competing well in terms of mentality, in terms of tennis, and then let's see.

Q. When you feel that you are regaining your confidence, how does that translate on the court? Does it mean you feel like you can take more risks? Do you feel like you're moving quicker? Do you feel like you can use more areas of the court?
RAFAEL NADAL: The sport in general is simple. It's quite simple. This is not a big deal about tennis or the sport in general. Normally it is not that complicated.

But in that case for me, when I feel that I am able to have more times the control of the point, when I feel when I going to hit the ball I know the ball going to goes in, when I don't think about how to hit the ball, but when I think just about where to hit the ball, that's good news when all these things happens.

This year, because things that we talked about enough, I was just worried about how to hit the ball to don't miss more than try to hit the ball where I need to hit the ball to damage the opponent or try to compete, just compete against the opponent. This year I have been more worried about myself than the opponents for a lot of matches. That's enough, no? That's impossible to compete at the highest level.

Today I feel free. I feel enjoying on court. That don't mean I going to play well on every match. That means I am happy. I go day by day. Happy how the things are going the last couple of weeks. I think was late on the year, but at the same time is at least the right time I try to finish the year with that positive feeling. That helps to try to start next year in better shape.

Q. I don't know if you saw what happened today in the first sets during a changeover, Andy Murray got some scissors out of his bag and cut his hair. I wondered if you have ever cut your hair, especially on a tennis court?
RAFAEL NADAL: No idea about what happened. You asked him why?

Q. He said the hair got into his eyes.
RAFAEL NADAL: Was not at the right time to know that. He has practice before to try to know that (smiling).

Was good. Is a good solution, yeah.

Q. You defeated Wawrinka. Now you've beaten Murray. How far do you consider you are from the elite, Djokovic and Federer?
RAFAEL NADAL: Andy is the No. 2 of the world today. The ranking in tennis is fair. The ranking in tennis is the result of long period of time, is one year. So if you are on the injuries, these kind of things, the ranking is not fair. But if you are able to compete the whole year, as I did, as Novak did, as Andy did, as Roger did, as Wawrinka did, then the ranking is fair.

Djokovic deserve to No. 1, Andy deserve to No. 2, and Roger deserve No. 3, Wawrinka No. 4, and me No. 5. I don't know how far I have been. I have been winning the matches against the No. 2 and the No. 4 in straight sets. If we don't know that I lost a lot this year and I played bad for a lot of moments this year, and we arrive here, for example, with a normal year playing well, probably we will be here talking that I am playing great and I am at my normal level, competing against the best players.

Knowing what happened during the whole year, I don't know how far I am. I won two great matches against two players, top-four players, in a tough surface for me. Today I here. Tomorrow I don't know where I going to be.

Q. Your volleys were quite good today. You won 11 out of 13 net points. Do you try to get to the net more often?
RAFAEL NADAL: I go to the net when I am confident. I go to the net when I am hitting the ball well, when I'm able to play aggressive. When that happens is because I am playing well.

Not always, but a lot of times my volley works well when I am going to the net.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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Rafa #Nadal press conference after his victory over Wawrinka in London (Transcript)

Q. Stan wasn't at all happy with what he put into the match tonight. How happy were you with your performance?
RAFAEL NADAL: I think I play well. I think I play a solid match. I had one bad game, the first one of the match. But then immediately I was playing well, no?

I had a good week of practice here. I think I played the way that I wanted to play. I played aggressive. I played with not many mistakes. Just the thing I can do a little bit better is serving. For the moment I didn't serve as good as I was doing in the previous days.

But for the rest, all the shots worked well: backhand, forehand, good volleys, good smash, no missing the smashes today. So that's good.

Q. Your movement seemed so good today. We think of the breakpoint you saved in the second game of the second set. Did you feel you were moving better?
RAFAEL NADAL: I am working well. I am happy the way that I am working, happy the way that I am competing the last couple of actually two, three months. For me is important to keep going the same way, no?

Is obvious when you coming from a bad period, not everything will be like this. But in general, the dynamic is very positive. Every day for me now is an opportunity to enjoy on court, enjoy the competition, something that I missed for moments this year. Just try my best in every single match. That's what I am doing.

I am feeling myself well on court. Just enjoying.

Q. Actually since Beijing you seem to be playing better and better. Do you feel it? Do you think this surface in a way, which seems quite slow, helps your game more than others or not?
RAFAEL NADAL: I don't play very well in that slow surfaces. I play better in little bit faster surfaces, not slow.

People thinks because I had a lot of success on clay, people thinks I play better on the slower surfaces. But the real thing is in hard court, in the courts that I had more success are in fast courts. Montréal is one of the fastest courts. I had a lot of success in Montréal. When I won the Olympics, was very fast court. Madrid 2005 was a fast court. And for sure Shanghai is fast, no?

When you are playing well, you are playing well in all the surfaces. When you are playing bad, you are playing bad in all the surfaces. Is not true that I play better because the surface is slow, no. I prefer to have little bit faster surface than a slower surface.

I am playing better since Montréal. I was practicing well there, in the US Open, too. If the results don't say that, you don't see the practices, but I know how I was practicing there.

Then the results on Beijing, Shanghai, Basel, Paris confirms that I am playing much better, no? So happy for that. As I said in Beijing, my main goal is try to start next year with my level, with the level that I want to be. I am working to make that happen.

Q. When you are playing better now, are you able to take that confidence into next year, or is it too far away that it doesn't make any difference?
RAFAEL NADAL: Sure makes a difference. I don't know what's going on next year, but for sure the end of the season helps. The way I am playing at the end of this season helps to try to start the next year with a different energy than what I started last year.

It's obvious that I am working hard. I really feel that if I am able to keep working the way that I am doing, keep competing the way that I am doing, I think that I am playing in the toughest surface for me to play, indoor, and in the worst part of the season always for me, these last tournaments of the year. If I am able to play well here, I think that's great news because that can be a good chance to start next year again with positive feelings.

As I said, that's my main goal.

Q. You just used the term 'bad period' from earlier this year, the way you were playing. During that period, how tough was it for you, or was it tough, to try and stay positive and believe that it was all going to turn around?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, I don't want to keep talking about that. We talked a lot about what happened this year. I have been very honest with all of you what's going on, the problems that I had.

But that's it. At the end of the day it's sport. Have been hard. Have been as hard as can be. Don't play well, don't feel comfortable on court. The things in life, there is for sure many more important things in life than tennis, no?

I was not happy the way that I was working on court. At the same time is only a game. When you see all the things that happen sometimes around the world, that's nothing. That's the world that we live here in tennis. Is completely a small thing, and that's it.

I was believing that the things can be back if I am able to work well. I keep believing.

Q. You play Andy now on Wednesday. How do you see that match going?
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, obviously is an opportunity for me to compete against the No. 2 of the world, a player who had a great season, a fantastic player in every surface, but especially in this one he likes to play.

I'm excited to play that match. I only take that match like an opportunity to play against him, to try to play a good match. I going to try.

Q. If you are playing better and better, maybe you can actually win this tournament this week, no?
RAFAEL NADAL: I won the first match, that's all. No, no, I cannot think about that, seriously. I didn't win enough this year to think about this kind of things. Think about winning a World Tour Finals in a year that I didn't win very important tournaments. I didn't win enough. So thinking about winning the tougher tournament of the year for me, because is in the worst surface possible, against the worst players possible, so is going to be so (indiscernible) for me to think about that.

Q. But you were just also saying when it's fast out there, you won Montréal, you were playing great, you won Wimbledon, it was fast. If it's fast here, maybe you can win it?
RAFAEL NADAL: I never say that it's fast here. I never say that is fast here. Here everybody is saying that it's slow. It's not that I'm saying it's fast.

The court is not fast. The court is okay. But it's obvious that I am playing against the best players of the world. I only won the first match. That's important for me, very important. But remain a lot to qualify for that semifinals. I cannot think about winning the tournament today when I only won the first match.

I think about the next match. Then if I am able to win next match, probably I will be in that semifinals. If not I going to keep fighting in the third match to try to be qualify for that semifinals.

I go day by day, that's all.

Q. You've won on grass, hard, obviously a lot on clay. Why is indoors a more difficult surface for you?
RAFAEL NADAL: I think the feeling on the ball is different than in outdoor. The things that during all my career worked very well in outdoor courts, in indoor have been more difficult. Is obvious that the opponents had more chances to play the way that he wanted to play against me. The topspin is less important. The serve gets bigger impact in indoor than in outdoor. Try to play two, three shots helps a lot. Wind is not there. I like to play with more different conditions.

But is true that I played good tournaments indoor, too. I will be lying if I am not saying I played a couple very good tournaments on indoor. It's not like I am playing bad in indoors at all. The opponents are good. I believe the opponents I have here feel them play a little bit better than me.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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