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BARCLAYS ATP WORLD TOUR FINALSNovember 22, 2011Rafael NadalLONDON, ENGLAND R. FEDERER/R. Nadal THE MODERATOR: Questions, please. Q. How do you feel? I was sorry when you beat Federer 6‑1, 6‑3, 6‑Love in Roland Garros in 2008. I feel sorry tonight for you. I would like to know if there is some comparison, similar stories, or they have nothing to do one with the other? The score is too severe to be true in a way. RAFAEL NADAL: The score is true. And today he played too good for me, and that's what happened. Just accept that. Just accept that today when you play against Federer and he's playing like this, the only way to stay in the match is have free points with the serve, because for the rest his level was too high in this surface. And I didn't had these free points as usual. So finally the score was 6‑3, 6‑Love. Accept that, congratulate him because he played really well. You know, is not the moment to say good‑bye. Is not the moment to go down. Is the moment to keep fighting. I still in the tournament. I still having the chance to be in the semifinals because if I win the next match I will be in semifinals. So is moment to keep fighting with positive attitude and is the moment to accept when he play like this he is better than me, and that's it. When I beat him in the final of Roland Garros, the similar thing was the result; the different thing was the final of a Grand Slam and here is round robin match. That is the only difference. The rest I think he didn't had nothing to do in that match. I didn't had nothing to do today. That's all. Q. You were mentioning it's a round robin match. Is one of the explanations that you didn't give a hundred percent because you know you can still make it to the semifinals or do you just feel tired at the end of a season? RAFAEL NADAL: If I say something, I would lie you, and I normally don't lie the people. I tried my best. I try my best always, no? But today I didn't play bad first set. That's funny, but I didn't play really bad. The serve, you know. He didn't have one mistake during all the match or two mistakes during all the match. Playing too aggressive. No, I try my best. But seems wasn't enough tonight, huh? Q. Is it then that you're tired? RAFAEL NADAL: Now I am tired. No, I was good. I was fine. I am fine. Q. As you just said, you now have a chance to play Tsonga to make the semifinals. How do you rate your chances against Tsonga, another aggressive player with a big serve? RAFAEL NADAL: We'll see, no? I have tomorrow to think about the match. I know him; he knows me. We played a lot of matches against each other. He's an explosive player, an aggressive one. I know that I have to play aggressive, I have to play long. If I play short, will be very difficult. I have to be solid with my serve. If not, is impossible, because to have breaks against him is always a really difficult thing. So we will see, no? I will have to try to play inside the court. I didn't feel bad the ball today, so that's the important thing that I take to the hotel. Have a good practice tomorrow. Yesterday I didn't had the chance to practice. Hopefully for tomorrow I will have the chance to keep practicing, have a good practice, and prepare the match with all the positive things that I have. We'll see. Q. Roger has a good record against you on indoor surfaces. RAFAEL NADAL: He has a good record, no? A perfect record, 100%. Q. What do you find is the difference when you play him indoors to other surfaces? RAFAEL NADAL: I say the other day. First thing, his level is probably higher here. All the conditions are perfect for him because the bounces are not too high. He can go inside the court with less problems than in the other surfaces. He can play inside the court. The ball doesn't move nothing, no windy. He has the chance to attack better in these conditions than in other surfaces. But, you know, look, if he plays like this in other surface, don't worry, he will beat me, too. That's the true. Q. Roger said maybe you also paying your lack of competition. Do you regret maybe the break after Shanghai? RAFAEL NADAL: No, no, no, no. When the things are done, the things are done. I still believe that was a positive stop for me. And the world doesn't end in this tournament. This tournament is not end for me. But if the tournament is end, the life continues. The decisions is not only thinking about one tournament. I take decisions thinking about a global thing. To prepare this tournament sometimes, if you have to take all the decisions thinking about the ranking, thinking about the next tournament, you will play in everywhere, because I have to play in Paris because it's a Masters 1000, because it's an important point for me to add to my ranking, and to prepare this tournament is maybe better play in Paris, yes. But we think about everything, how was the match, the player who played more matches during all the year. Is my seventh year playing No.1, No. 2 guy with more matches in my shoulders. I play the final of Davis Cup. I only have two weeks and a half to practice after the Davis Cup final to prepare next season. That's the problem. If my problems was only the Masters World Tour Finals, I would be in Paris. But disappointing for me I cannot be in everywhere. That's the true. And I have to do my calendar. I have to take decisions in my calendar. I have to take decisions thinking about what is better for my health and what is better for my tennis. I believe for my tennis was better stop because sometimes you arrive to some situations, you are a little bit more blocked mentally than other ones. When you feel that, you need to stop. That's what I felt after Shanghai. I was healthy. It was important for me stay healthy until the beginning of the next season, to keep practicing. I worked very well the last three weeks. But the work doesn't show in the next tournament. You can work, but that's not means you're going to play fantastic in the next tournament. It's a long time work. But if you have only the chance to work two weeks and a half, is for sure not going to be enough. But now I have three weeks of practice, two weeks of competition, two weeks and a half of practice. So that's almost one month and a half. Probably that works better than two weeks and a half. And that's what I am trying, to prepare the next season about what I think is best, to prepare the next season and play well the next season. I accept this season is not done because remain a few tournaments. But if I arrive with a little bit less preparation to these tournaments, I accept that, to try to prepare the next season better. But seriously I am not disappointing about how ending here. I had the problem the first day. Today I accept he played a fantastic level. A very, very top level. Something very special only one player like Roger can arrive to. So accept that and keep fighting. I will keep fighting on Thursday. If not, I going to fly back to Seville to fight for the final of Davis Cup. And later I'm going to practice. Here we cannot stop and we cannot think about the past, what I done. What I done is the decisions I had to take, and I did it. I go forward with this. Q. How does it work in your team after a match like that? RAFAEL NADAL: Is an easy match to comment (smiling). Q. But you go through it or just say, Forget it? RAFAEL NADAL: No, I accept normally the loses. I can talk. I know I was talking now in the locker room. But, you know, is not the first time that I lost a match like this, and not gonna be the last. The only thing is accept the things, try to find solutions. What I have to say? When he plays like this, he is better than me. I have my limits. He has his limits. Today my limit was there, his limit wasn't there. You know, when he plays like this in this surface, I have to accept that he's better player than me. We'll see. I will try my best to play against him another time in this tournament. Q. You said you didn't have a chance to practice yesterday. Were you still feeling unwell from the first day? RAFAEL NADAL: I am perfect today. Q. But yesterday you were still a bit... RAFAEL NADAL: Was three hours of match. Last hour was really hard for me. You know, playing one hour without the right conditions, physical conditions, I had the problem in my shoulder a few weeks ago at home. So I felt perfect in that. With that problem yesterday, I wake up with a problem on the shoulder another time, so I had to work a lot yesterday on the recover on the shoulder. Seriously yesterday I didn't know if I gonna be ready to play today. I tried to practice, and I didn't had that chance. But that's for sure. Doesn't affect my match of today because I felt perfect today. At the same time for me is a positive day today because I played without problems and I can still play and continue in the tournament and I can still have chance. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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