- Rafael Nadal admitted his knee injury continues to "bother" him after the Spaniard suffered double defeat in the final of the singles and doubles tournaments at the VTR Open in Vina del Mar, Chile.
The clay court event was
the former world No. 1's first tournament in seven months due to an
injury to his left knee, which caused him to miss both the U.S. Open as
well as the Australian Open.
"The knee is still
bothering me, but you have to face adversity with the best possible face
and look forward to keep working and enjoy what I like the most, to
play tennis," said the 11-time grand slam champion told the ATP World
Tour's website.
Despite his discomfort
and a 6-7 (2-7) 7-6 (8-6) 6-4 loss to Argentina's Horacio Zeballos,
Nadal stressed the positives he had taken away from the event having
played nine matches in six days.
"A week ago we didn't
know how the body would respond," the 26-year-old Mallorcan. "[Now] at
least I know we can compete at a certain level.
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"I think that was a
positive week... I will try to keep improving my physical sensations
day-by-day, which is the most important thing because I don't feel that
my tennis level is bad. I need more time on court.
World No. 43 Zeballos
picked up his first career Tour title and became just the third player
to beat Nadal in a clay court final, following in the foot steps of
Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.
It was only Nadal's fifth defeat in 41 clay court finals.
"The tennis is
important, but for me the best thing was to have the feelings I've had
this week, with a full stadium and one of the best crowds I've ever had
in my life," added Nadal. "It's a place I won't forget because of the
love people gave me.
"I was two points away
from winning the title, but I said from first day that the result was
not the most important thing, although I would've liked to win.
"My opponent won, he deserved it and I congratulate him. Still, to win four matches in a row is good news for me."
Nadal and Argentine partner Juan Monaco lost the doubles final to Italians Potito Starace and Paolo Lorenzi.
This week Nadal will
continue his rehabilitation in South America, where he will be top seed
at this week's Brazil Open in Sao Paulo.
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