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CHINA OPEN

October 2, 2016

Rafael Nadal

Beijing, China

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. You had such a wonderful day yesterday. How was the trip to the Great Wall?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, it was good. I had to visit the Great Wall for the first time in my life. I've been here, yeah, lot of times already. I had never the chance to visit it. I really enjoy it.

Q. How do you feel coming into this tournament practice-wise, the wrist? Everything completely okay?
RAFAEL NADAL: Good, no? For me is always special be back here. Is one of the most important places in my career. I won the gold medal in this place eight years ago. Goes quick.

Yes, I am excited to be back here. I need to keep practicing well this afternoon, tomorrow, try to be ready for the match on Tuesday. That's all.

Q. You had some issues in Davis Cup. Was it linked to the wrist?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, it's okay. It's okay. Thank you.

Q. You have so many amazing comebacks after serious injuries like in 2010 and 2013. You impress all the people that you can rebuild yourself to win big tournaments. This time do you have confidence to create new inspiring stories for us again?
RAFAEL NADAL: Is always difficult, no? Is even more difficult when you have injuries in the middle of the season. If you have the injuries at the end of the season, everybody stops at the end of the season, so you have time to recover. A new year, everybody starts not from zero, but starts again. It's a little bit easier to come back well.

Having injuries at the middle of the season is tougher. But being realistic, I should be happy the way I came back after the injury. I played a great Olympic Games, and I played a good US Open. I lost a match against a very good player, but a match that I had a big chance to win.

No, I should be happy. It's obvious that I need to continue work with the things that I need to keep improving, to try to be back at the level I was before the injury this year. I was playing great, I think. I going to try to make it.

Q. You are still in the race for the ATP Final to London. Is that a motivation?
RAFAEL NADAL: For me to qualify for the ATP World Tour Finals?

Q. Yes.
RAFAEL NADAL: Yes, is always important thing. Remain four tournaments for trying to qualify. I going to try, yes.

Q. There's more and more talk about speeding up the game, changing the scoring to make the game faster. What is your opinion about this? Playing sets to four games, no-ad scoring. Does tennis need to change to make matches faster?
RAFAEL NADAL: I don't know. I think depends. Depends on what you are looking for. If you are looking for just hitting balls and don't think much, yes. I mean, if you're looking for work little bit more on the longer points, the things that really makes the people involved on a tennis match, probably is a mistake.

But I am just a player. I am just a player that going to do the things that the rules says. That's all.

I don't remember no one match in my life, not of me, or tennis in general, that the match finished in one hour. I think is not in the memory of the people, these kind of matches. The kind of matches that stays on the memory and on the history of our sport are a little bit long matches and dramatic matches that become emotional, the physical issues, everything. You need to put everything together to create a great show, to create a show that the people emotionally feels involved on the match.

I don't know. I don't remember a match that the people remember with just serves and winners and mistakes and short points. I am not sure if the people are looking for that.

Q. The WTA said last week that to get the attention of the next generation, like the young generation involved in tennis, that's the argument. What is your opinion about that?
RAFAEL NADAL: I repeat what I said. I am just a player. I just have my opinion. Maybe I am wrong. I don't think so, but maybe I am wrong.

If you want to change the values of the sport, maybe yes. But the tennis has values that we need to follow, in my opinion. It's clear that all the sports needs an improvements. All the sports needs to improve and adapt to the new things.

But I am not sure if that's the way, to make the matches quicker, make the timing between points quick, with matches at four games. I think there is a point with other solutions to make the people involved.

Is not about the scoring, in my opinion. It's about to change things that makes the game more interesting, not about having shorter points.

I repeat what I said. Do you remember a match with just 50 aces? Do you think that create emotions on people? I don't think so. So what we really need is to have a show that the people, when is watching our sport, really gets emotional and really enjoy the game.

If we try to move the sport on that way, every time going to be only more and more shots and nothing else. At the end of the day, the sport, in my opinion, is another thing.

Q. I'm from the Dutch press. Next year you're coming to Rotterdam. The last couple years you decided to play in South America on clay. Can you explain your choice to come back to Rotterdam.
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, I enjoyed a lot in South America. Is a place that I feel close to the people. I feel a lot of support from them. So it's very excited for me to play in South America.

The real thing is the weather conditions, in my opinion, are a little bit too much to practice the sport. Last couple years I really don't enjoy it. I enjoyed the crowd. I enjoyed the place. But the weather conditions are too extreme, no?

I want to enjoy playing tennis, and I didn't enjoy last two years because I was practicing, and after 10 minutes I was sweating too much. I feel the weather conditions are too extreme to practice the sport. I don't think that's health for the body, in general.

That will be something that, in my opinion, ATP look for to find another spot in the calendar for these kind of tournaments. In that period of the year, the weather conditions are too much.

Rotterdam is a tournament I know very well. I have been there a couple of times. Is in Europe. Is a great event. Is a historic event of our tour. I am excited to be back there. Always had a great relationship with Richard Krajicek. I had a great tournament in 2009, I think. I played a great tournament there. My knees are better. So I am able to play more on hard.

Q. This morning I saw you with practice with Pouille. People wanted to see your meeting after the US Open. My question is, how do you prepare for your potential meeting with Pouille? How do you look at your draw for this tournament?
RAFAEL NADAL: That quarterfinals. Is always the same: you don't play quarterfinals before the first round. Not for him, not for me. So remain a lot.

I need to play well from the first day because if not I don't going to win against Lorenzi.

Q. We saw some pictures yesterday showing you and a China swimmer Ning playing a billiard game. How do you enjoy it?
RAFAEL NADAL: I enjoy because I won (smiling). No, I am joking.

Just was great to meet him. He's a big star. Just thanks to him to visit our tournament. Is great to have important people around our sport. So just was a great news for the tournament by itself and for me personal was an honor.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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