Rafael Nadal said that when he was sidelined for seven months due to a left knee injury, he never thought that he will have the opportunity to return at the top of the rankings, let alone be amongst the best players on tour.
“I thought that I would never have the chance to be back there,” Nadal said on Tuesday at the Shanghai Rolex Masters. “Being No. 1 again is special. I was confident that when I was back I would have the chance to keep competing well, keep having chances to play for important tournaments, but I never thought about being back to No. 1.”
Nadal has recorded a 65-4 win-loss of the 2013 season so far which saw him winning ten titles, including two Grand Slam titles and five ATP Masters 1000 titles. He reclaimed the number one ranking after reaching the final of the China Open on Sunday.
“I am today. But that means that I am having probably one of the best seasons of my career. It’s great. It’s good news to be No. 1. But what is great news is all the season that I had until here.”
“I know in the past this part of the season was hard for me, but I am confident that I can keep playing well. I am doing the right things to be ready. Tomorrow I will start [against Alexandr Dolgopolov or Michael Russell]. I hope to be competitive and have my chance tomorrow. I’m going to go day to day as I did my whole career. I am going to try my best tomorrow,” the Spaniard said.
