"I still have a chance" - Rafael Nadal remains positive despite losing to Taylor Fritz in his opening match of ATP Finals
Rafael Nadal remains positive about his chances at the ATP Finals in Turin, despite losing his opening match in straight sets to Taylor Fritz.
The Spaniard, who is chasing his maiden title at the event, squared off against Fritz on Sunday and went down 6(3)-7, 1-6 despite putting on a valiant battle in the first set. Despite losing his first group match, the 22-time Grand Slam champion still has a chance to progress to the semifinals of the event if he defeats Felix-Auger Aliassime in his next match.
In his post-match press conference, the 36-year-old spoke about his match performance while acknowledging that he still had a shot at the tournament.
“I know I am practicing well and with the right attitude and doing the right things. In the matches I not improve without a doubt. In this tournament I still have a chance,” said Nadal.
He said that "time" was a key factor that affected his match, as he did not have enough match practice between the Paris Masters and the ATP Finals.
"Tennis and the sport in general, it's about time. I have less time than him to do what I want to do on the ball. I felt that everything was going so fast. When that's happen, normally you are under stress and you don't have the time to play the kind of shot that you want. In most of the points of the match, I was in a defensive position and he was in an offensive position. That's what happened," said Nadal.
"But every single time I came back from injury, don't happen that way playing against top players since the first day, you know? That's what's happening when you are coming back, playing Masters 1000s and World Tour Finals," he added.
"Normally I try to come back in lower events. Normally you don't need to play at your top to win couple of matches. Then if you made that happen, when you face the top players, you are more ready, no?" he expressed.
Rafael Nadal takes on Felix Auger-Aliassime in his next group stage match at ATP Finals
Rafael Nadal will face Felix Auger-Aliassime on Tuesday in his second group stage of the 2022 ATP Finals. The Spaniard has to win that contest to remain in contention for the title and the year-end No. 1 spot.
"Well, it's a match like a normal tournament already, no, because the loser will go out of the tournament normally. Just accept that I need to do better things. I hope to be ready to make that happen," said Nadal.
The former World No. 1 is not expecting an easy time against the Canadian, who has been in good touch over the last few weeks.
"He finish the season playing unbelievable, winning tournaments in a row, playing so well. Another big challenge," he stated.