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SHANGHAI ATP MASTERS 1000

October 18, 2009

Rafael Nadal

SHANGHAI, CHINA

N. DAVYDENKO/R. Nadal
7-6, 6-3

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. You said yesterday you're very happy to make the final. It's a good achievement for you. How do you feel now?
RAFAEL NADAL: Yeah, happy too, no? So I don't know if this is working well, but, yeah, I think, sure. I don't like to lose, but I had my chance. He beat me. He played very good match. Just congratulate him, because he deserve the victory, no?
I have my chance in the first set and I am especially happy with one thing: Is the first match after my injury comeback against one top player. I was competing 100% of my conditions, and I was competing. I really felt I really have chances to win.
So that's the first time, and that's the most positive thing for me, and I fight all the time with positive attitude, no physical problems. So that's very good news for me.
Very good Asian tour, Asian season for me, no? Semifinals Beijing, final here. Just happy for everything. Sure, I would love to -- I would like to win here, but the tournament is very positive, and I gonna continue working like this to try to continue in this way, no?
I am playing much better, am moving much better on court, and it's still working like this.

Q. How difficult is it to hit winners against Nikolay?
RAFAEL NADAL: He play all the time inside the court, very aggressive. He had -- he didn't had a lot of mistakes, no? Just playing well from both sides. Just for few moments in the first set he had few mistakes with the forehand.
But was difficult, no? It was difficult to have winners, because he, since the first ball, he push you back, no? So I think I did well. I played well. I played a good match. You know, I think I needed a little bit more be calm in this moment, but to have this calm I need to play with -- well, I don't know what the word is right, but with the calm of if you win tournament before or you play with more calm these important moments, no? So that's the only thing that I need right now, and this match works very well for me, no?

Q. Is he a little bit underrated? People don't really think of him that much, you know. They know he's in the top 10, but nobody talks about his game and whatever. Do people not give him enough credit for the player he is?
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, I don't know. He had five Masters in a row, Masters Cup? So for last five years he was in the top five.
Yeah, probably he's a guy, well, calm guy. Doesn't show no emotions sometimes. So, yeah, the people probably don't talk a lot about him, but the players, we know how good is Nikolay, no? And when he's playing his best level, he's very difficult to play against him.
He play -- he has all the shots from the baseline. He has all the shots. He play inside the court, and, yeah, he's very difficult to play. It's very difficult to play against him. Just congratulate him. He did very well, and with this victory probably he's closer to be in London. That's it, no?

Q. It was the same story that it was last year in Miami?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, completely different.

Q. Completely different?
RAFAEL NADAL: Sure. In Miami I played really bad. No, that tournament in Miami I played really bad. He didn't play the same like today. He played worse. That's my feeling.
No, no. I was completing much better this year, today, than what I did in Miami last year final, no? Is completely different, my opinion.

Q. Are you surprised that he hasn't won a Grand Slam yet? Because with the type -- you say he has all the shots. How come he hasn't won a Grand Slam?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, I am not surprised. He can do it, but, you know, how difficult is winning Grand Slam, no?

Q. I don't know. (laughter.)
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, I know. You don't know; I know.

Q. In your mind, do you have an idea of when you expect to be playing at your absolute best with calm?
RAFAEL NADAL: That's impossible to say, no? I just can say I gonna work hard to be at my best as soon as possible, and I am not seeing myself very far of that.
But I am playing hardcourts and doing well. But at the same time, I have more titles and more wins when I play on clay, so in this season is in hard, the hardcourts, and I am doing very good end of the season.
But seems like is not enough, because I didn't play for a while during the middle of the season and seemed like I need more. But if you compare the results of the last years, semifinals of Cincinnati. This is only my second time to play semifinal in Cincinnati in my career. I played semifinals in US Open. I only did last year. The years before I never did. And I played final here. Last year I played semifinals in Madrid, if we compare, no? And two years ago I played quarterfinals and another time quarterfinals.
No, the results is I'm doing well, no? I'm doing one of the best end of the seasons in my life. But, yeah, I happy for that. I would love to have a title, but if I am still playing like this in Paris and London, it's difficult, sure. The best players are there. But in Paris I expect to have another chance to play a good tournament, no?
And if you are there all the time semifinals, final, you gonna win. I don't know when, but you're gonna win.

Q. I just wondered against a player like Nikolay, I think you played one dropshot today. Is he a very tough player to play that shot against, especially?
RAFAEL NADAL: Almost impossible, because he's inside the court all the time, so you can play dropshot when you are attacking, so you are -- if you are defending almost all the time, it's impossible to play dropshots, no?
Probably the only thing what I can improve it more today, no? I change it but late. I change it -- in the 5-2 I played a very good game with my serve, attack, having very good forehands. But, yeah, to do that all the time, I need a little bit more confidence and a little bit more matches at this level.
But I compete. I was competing all the time at very good level, trying to find solutions all the time, and I did well, but he did a little bit better than me.

Q. Your quarterfinal and semifinal your opponent retired in a row. Do you think it's part of reason you lose this match today? Because you are not --
RAFAEL NADAL: No.

Q. -- physically and mentally warmed up?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, no, sure not.

Q. Yesterday after losing the semifinal, Novak just give us three-minutes press conference after three-hours tennis, actually, because he tends to give one-sentence answer to every question. But you always handle loss very well, including press conference, which we really appreciate. My question is we all know how win means to players, but could you tell us what lose means to you?
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, every lose is different, and every moment is completely different. So the important thing is, in my opinion, is when you go on court, you have to know you can win and you can lose. So if you know that before the match, is easier to accept that after both things, no?
The thing is you must accept the victories with the same calm than the losers. So if you win, you win, you are more happy, you feel you are the best of the world. You think something like this is where this is gonna be more difficult to be there and still winning more time. And if you lose, anyway, you can be angry or doesn't matter, but everyone has different character, and that's part of the character.
So for me today is a lose but is a positive lose. Sometimes I have a negative lose. I never was very angry, no?
But, no, that's character, and I know I can lose every match and I can win every match. Later you be here, and that's part of the work, and happy to be here and happy to be in the tour, to be playing, you know, another time with no problems. Just thinking about tennis, so that's very good news for me. I expect to be here for a long time I play without problems for a few more years.

End of FastScripts

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