Nadal To Double Up At Rogers Cup

© Tennis Canada/Ron TurenneDon't text and fly! After the draw Nadal was airlifted by helicopter to the Rexall Centre to practice.

Rafael Nadal says that his body is in ‘perfect condition’ ahead of the Rogers Cup and that his good health impacted his decision to team with Novak Djokovic in a high-profile doubles partnership at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event, which begins Monday. Speaking at the official draw at Toronto’s landmark CN Tower, two-time Rogers Cup champion Nadal said that he believed his body was capable of undergoing double duty in Canada next week.

“Last year I didn’t play because I had problems with the knee. This year I like the idea. Doubles is an important part of the game and you can improve lots of parts of your game. Playing with Novak will be positive. I am excited. He is one of the most talented players in the world. To have him in my half of the court will be a nice experience. I am feeling confident with my body. I am not thinking of my body, I am thinking about tennis. I am in perfect condition.

"After Wimbledon I did some prevention treatment [for my knees] and I stopped for three weeks. But then I started to practise a little more each day and I will continue to practice a little harder in the next few days.”

The Rogers Cup will mark the first time since 2003 that Nadal and arch rival Roger Federer will not be the top two seeds when they both played in the same tournament. World No. 3 Federer was drawn to play in the bottom half, where he could meet No. 2 seed Djokovic in the semi-finals.

Nadal, who won his first hard court title at the Rogers Cup in 2005, says that he is a much more accomplished all-court player since his breakthrough in Montreal. “I think I am more complete player than 2005. If I play well I will have a chance of having a good result on all surfaces. If play bad on any surface other than clay I won’t have a chance. The level between players is very close.”

Nadal is playing his first tournament since Wimbledon and is chasing his fourth consecutive ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title after he became the first player in history (since 1990) to make a clean sweep of the three clay-court Masters 1000 tournaments in Monte-Carlo, Rome and Madrid. The eight-time Grand Slam champion has won 31 of his past 32 matches, losing only to fellow Spaniard Feliciano Lopez on grass in the quarter-finals of Queen’s.

In his last two appearances on American hard courts back in March, Nadal reached the semi-finals of both ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournaments in Indian Wells and Miami.