Rafael Nadal: ‘Tennis is not everything for me’

For those who had been following the career of 14-time grand slam champion Rafael Nadal, it is unanticipated to witness his tennis career plummet over the past few years. Even though his tennis performance isn’t going the way Nadal would have wanted it the past couple of years, the Spanish tennis star recently said he has no reason to get frustrated over the results of his recent tournaments.

“Tennis has always been a very important part of my life, for sure,” Nadal said during a meet-and-greet with the media ahead of 2015 Rogers Cup, Toronto Sun reports. “But I always say the same: Tennis is not everything for me.”

According to the 29-year-old Mallorca native, he won’t feel bad even if he loses more matches in the future. What is important for Nadal is that he is happy with his life outside the sport. He said that he is surrounded by people who love him. Nadal, who was sidelined due to number of injuries last season, said that he is also happy with his physical health right now.

The Spanish tennis star added that he still gets to do a lot of activities such as playing golf, scuba diving, swimming and fishing despite his busy schedule on tour. Nadal said that he still gets to do what normal people do outside of tennis.

Nadal dropped to as low as the 10th place in the world rankings this season, his worst ranking since April 2005 (World No. 11). Following his Hamburg victory where he beat Italy’s Fabio Fognini in the finale 7-5 7-5, Nadal moved up one notch up to World No. 9.

Seeded seventh, Nadal hopes to keep the momentum heading to Montreal after claiming his first hardcourt title this season in Hungary. Nadal’s first match will be in the second round against Ukraine's Sergiy Stakhovsky, who beat Canadian wildcard Filip Peliwo to advance in the next round 1-6 7-5 6-2.

Nadal is a two-time champion in Montreal, having won the titles in 2005 and 2013. This year is the 10th time that he will be participating in the ATP Masters 1000 event, his sixth Masters 1000 event this season. The Spanish is hoping to put an end to his “up-and-down” first half of the season, ATPWorldTour.com reports.

Furthermore, Nadal is looking forward to build on his Hamburg victory when he takes on his first match in Montreal. He said that he felt “positive” during the Hamburg event, something that he hasn’t been able to experience much this season.

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