Abu Dhabi: World No. 2 Rafael Nadal plans to take several weeks off after the Australian Open to recover from a nagging shoulder injury.
Nadal said that he had this problem before the ATP World Tour Finals in November and that he was still “not 100 per cent”.
He only decided three days ago to defend his title at the World Tennis Championships, a two-day exhibition tournament in Abu Dhabi.
“I had a problem before London with my shoulder and I had to stop for about 10 days before the (ATP) finals,” Nadal said.
“It felt better but again it resurfaced. In December, I did not have enough time to practice because of that.”
After competing at the Australian Open beginning January 16, the 25-year-old Spaniard said he would take February off to rest and practice.
Rafael Nadal will meet fellow Spaniard David Ferrer who beat Jo Wilfried Tsonga of France 2-6, 7-6 (5), 6-2 in the six-man field of the $250,000 winner-takes-all exhibition.
While praising the dominance in 2011 of No1 Novak Djokovic, who won three grand slams, Nadal blamed himself for allowing his play to become “too predictable” at times. But he insisted he wasn’t going to overhaul his game despite losing to Djokovic in six finals.
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