Nadal: 'I Am Ready To Win Big Titles'

On Sunday, Roger Federer put the rest of the ATP World Tour on notice, claiming his third title of the season at the Miami Open presented by Itau.

Federer’s run of dominance has been arguably the biggest storyline in 2017, but the Swiss does not stand alone. Despite falling 6-3, 6-4, Rafael Nadal is tied with his longtime rival atop the match wins leaderboard and after a strong fortnight in Miami, he says he is ready to challenge for big titles once again. The Spaniard believes his deep run at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event is representative of his resurgent form.

“I think I am close to where I need to be,” said Nadal. “I am at a very high level of tennis and I believe I am ready to win these titles. I already played three finals this year and today I lost to a player that had lost only one match.”

Two weeks ago, Federer was at his ruthless best against Nadal in Indian Wells, dropping just five games. On Sunday, the Miami final yielded the same outcome, but Nadal admits that it was a completely different match.

With both competitors surging to Top 5 returns in the Emirates ATP Rankings, the Spaniard, who will rise two spots to World No. 5, is looking to build on the momentum in the weeks and months to come. 

“For me, it was a much closer result than the result says and completely different than last week,” Nadal added. “I have been playing well during the whole event. It was a positive tournament for me obviously. A lot of [Emirates ATP Rankings] points, a lot of confidence for the most important part of the season for me that’s just in two weeks.”

FedEx ATP Win/Loss Index (2017)

Nadal was bidding to claim his first Miami title in his fifth final appearance and join Andre Agassi as the only players to win ATP World Tour Masters 1000 titles in their teens, 20s and 30s. 

The 30 year old next turns his attention to his most successful stretch of the year, as the European clay-court swing is set to commence in two weeks at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters. Following an impressive run on the North American hard courts, reaching the final in Acapulco, Round of 16 in Indian Wells and final in Miami, Nadal is confident for a strong run on his favourite surface. 

“I’m playing enough well to fight for everything I think. I have good hopes that I going to be ready for Monte-Carlo. Always when I am playing that well, on clay it helps a little bit more for me. I need to work hard to be ready for that. If I am ready for that, I think I am very excited about playing on clay again.

“I think about resting a little bit, having fun a little bit in Mallorca and I’ll be happy to be back home after one-and-a-half months. Then I will start working hard on clay. That’s my goal now. My goal is to feel ready to play on clay again and I know if I have good preparation and have a healthy transition to the clay and find my rhythm on clay, I can be one of those candidates.”

Nadal will seek to make history on the clay, vying to become the first player to win 10 titles at a single tour-level event. He currently owns nine each in Monte-Carlo, Barcelona and Roland Garros.