"At this point of the season for me, every victory is important, every title means a lot to me. This is not confidence for Wimbledon, this is an important victory for me and I'm happy for that today.
"At this point of the season for me, every victory is important, every title means a lot to me. This is not confidence for Wimbledon, this is an important victory for me and I'm happy for that today.
Roger Federer erased miserable memories by gliding into the second round of the French Open with a clinical 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 victory over Spaniard Alberto Martin on Monday.
Only one player has beaten Rafael Nadal on his beloved claycourts this year and that man, Austria's Dominic Thiem, blocks the Spaniard's path to the French Open final.
When action begins on Sunday atthe French Open, Nadal will be aiming to become the first man to win a hat-trick of French Open trophies in his first three visits to Paris.
The Swiss ace came from a set down to snap the Spaniard's 81-match winning streak on clay on Sunday.
Former World No. 1 Rafa Nadal admitted he has struggled of late to rekindle his passion for tennis on Thursday after defeat by Jo-Wilfried Tsonga sent him spinning out of the ATP World Tour Finals at the group stage.
The bull-like Alcaraz, playing only his second Grand Slam final compared to Djokovic's record 35, put on a show
Former champions Stanislas Wawrinka and Rafael Nadal gave Australian Open organisers a massive boost on Tuesday when they both said they were looking forward to next week's season opening Grand Slam after battling long-term injuries.
Rafael Nadal will return to his old routine in a bid to recapture the Wimbledon crown.
They reached the fourth round of the Pacific Life Open on Monday.
Rafael Nadal extended his astonishing winning run on clay to 42 consecutive sets as he reached the semi-finals of the Barcelona Open with a 6-0, 7-5 victory over Slovakia's Martin Klizan.
Holding the racket is not a problem and he remains able to hit his powerful topspin forehand but the world number one has found it increasingly difficult to control his serve as the tournament has progressed.
Serbian former world number one Novak Djokovic will be in action at his home club, working under old coach Marian Vajda -- desperately searching for some spark after tumbling down to 13th in the rankings.
Seven-times grand slam champion John McEnroe called Nadal's latest injury "extremely disappointing". "We've seen him play for many years and it's always been a concern about how his knees would hold up," the American told Eurosport in his daily spot. "After last year, we all hoped he would be able to get his health and fitness back and get his game together and it looked like that was happening. "We all know how much he wanted (title) number 10 and we were looking forward to seeing play Novak in the semis." Former French Open champion Mats Wilander said the decision had been a no-brainer for Nadal.
Claycourt maestro Rafael Nadal swept to a 6-3 6-1 victory over Juergen Melzer in the second round of the Madrid Open on Wednesday.
As Real Madrid star striker Cristiano Ronaldo watched, the World No 4 Nadal went past Italian Bolelli to set up a quarter-final clash against 10th seed Grigor Dimitrov.
The current best player in the world meets the greatest claycourt player of all time in a French Open blockbuster on Friday -- but it is not even the final.
World No 2 Rafael Nadal recovered from a slow start to beat compatriot Tommy Robredo and get his Masters Cup campaign back on track.
Images from the French Open matches played at Roland Garros on Thursday.
Rafael Nadal, working his way back to top form after wrist problems last year, screamed with delight on reaching the Argentine Open semi-finals with a 6-1 6-1 rout of Federico Delbonis on Friday.
Rafa Nadal said he was not playing well enough to lift the French Open title despite breezing past Ivan Ljubicic in their fourth-round match on Monday.
World number three Rafael Nadal won the Monte Carlo Masters for a record sixth consecutive time with a 6-0, 6-1 drubbing of fellow Spaniard Fernando Verdasco in the final on Sunday.
'I really don't think much about these kind of things. I do my way, he does his way'
Rafael Nadal says he could miss the season-ending ATP World Tour Finals next month because of appendicitis.
The two men's quarter-final matches due to be played at the French Open in Paris on Tuesday have been postponed until Wednesday after rain disrupted play at Roland Garros.
'I feel happy to be part of this rivalry, but at the same time, I played even more matches with Novak (Djokovic) than with Roger in such important matches, too'
The 32-year-old, who has not played since retiring injured in the US Open semi-finals, cited an abdominal injury.
Sharapova was broken in the first game but fought back to draw level before going on to take the first set with a hold to love.
Although comprehensively beaten by Novak Djokovic on the Monte Carlo semi-finals, clay court king Rafael Nadal believes he is on the right path as his beloved French Open looms.
While Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal won their opening matches in straight sets on Saturday, World No. 4, David Ferrer became the first top seed to make an early exit from the BNP Paribas Open.
Spain's World No 5 Rafael Nadal has been ruled out of opening singles rubber against India in their Davis Cup World Group play-off in New Delhi on Friday.
Andy Murray felt 'gutted' for Rafa Nadal when the Spaniard limped out of the Australian Open with a knee injury but said he deserved his place in the semi-finals after putting on a dazzling display.
German Alexander Zverev thought his time had finally come to win a Grand Slam title but his French Open campaign ended in pain and agony after he was forced to retire during his semi-final against Spaniard Rafael Nadal with an ankle injury.
Novak Djokovic said winning a record 23rd men's singles Grand Slam title at the French Open was special given that it was always the toughest one to win for him.
Andy Murray continued his remarkable run on clay.
Rafael Nadal says winning a French Open-Wimbledon double for the third time in his career will be "complicated" but is highly motivated to have a go as he prepares for the grasscourt season.
Eight-time Grand Slam champion Andre Agassi has picked Spaniard Rafael Nadal over Swiss maestro Roger Federer as the greatest tennis player ever, according to a newspaper report on Thursday.
Nadal's comments follow media reports this week that Novak Djokovic, the president of the Players' Council, had urged players to unionise at a pre-Australian Open meeting and revolt over the way the revenues from the four grand slams are distributed.
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