"I am happy to be in this position and if it happens, I will be very happy" - Rafael Nadal on his chances of becoming World No. 1 after Cincinnati Open
Rafael Nadal has a shot at becoming the World No. 1 this week, provided he wins the Cincinnati Open and current World No. 1 Daniil Medvedev faces an early exit from the tournament. It is a rare chance for the Spaniard, who hasn't occupied the top spot since February 2020.
Speaking at his pre-tournament press conference at the Masters 1000 event, however, the Mallorcan revealed that it wasn't something he was nervous about. While he admitted that he was happy to be in this position and that he would be even happier if it came to fruition, the 22-time Grand Slam champion is simply focused on giving his all in Cincinnati for now.
“I am going to put all my efforts into every single event I play," he said. "It is something that doesn’t matter if I have the chance to be No. 1, but I am happy to be in this position and if it happens, I will be very happy.”
More importantly, the World No. 3 remarked that he wanted to stay healthy and keep himself fit for the rest of the season, adding that he will be listening to his body every step of the way to avoid another injury scare.
“It means a lot to me to have that opportunity [to rise to No. 1]. Something that I didn’t expect could happen again. The main thing is to stay healthy and play the events that I want to play," Nadal said. "I will not play more than what I believe works well for my body."
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PHOTOS: Rafael Nadal puts fitness atop his Cincinnati priority list
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It is a prudent move by the 36-year-old, as he was forced to withdraw from his Wimbledon semifinal against Nick Kyrgios due to an abdominal injury. While he was scheduled to play in the Canadian Open last week, the lingering effects of the injury forced him to pull out of the ATP1000 event at the last minute as well.
Also Checkout: Cincinnati Open 2021 Results
"You need to know that when you come back after a while that things aren’t going to be perfect" - Rafael Nadal
During the press conference, Rafael Nadal also touched on how he expected to fare on his comeback, remarking that it was not going to be perfect by any means. Thankfully, the former World No. 1 accepted that he had to be humble enough till he gets back into rhythm, adding that his attitude will eventually change once he finds his competitive spirit once more.
“You need to know that when you come back after a while that things aren’t going to be perfect. You can’t expect to play at an amazing level from the beginning. Knowing that you [need to] be humble enough to fight with the tools that you have at the beginning to win the first match," Nadal said. "Then when you win a match or two matches things change and you start to feel competitive again."
The 22-time Grand Slam champion was of the opinion that making a comeback at a Masters 1000 tournament was even harder than at a Grand Slam, since the nature of the draw pits players against demanding opponents right from the beginning.
Rafael Nadal: “I won’t play more than what I think will work for my body”
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Nadal is hoping he can keep up with the demands in Cincinnati, where he is scheduled to take on either Borna Coric or a qualifier/lucky loser in the second round after receiving a bye in the first round.
“Competition is different and you need to accept that things are going to be difficult, even more so in a Masters 1000 because when you come back, even at a Grand Slam, if you are lucky with the draw, even if you aren’t playing at a high level you have a chance to win a couple of matches," Nadal said. "But at a Masters 1000, opponents are very demanding right from the beginning so you need to play at a high level and that is what I am going to try to do.”