Rafael Nadal: "I have become too predictable"

Relaxing during the off-season in his familiar lair, Rafael Nadal is seated on the terrace of his old tennis club in Manacor, on the island of Mallorca. This is where the child Rafa learned what was to be his trade, once professional soccer had been ruled out, and he cannot resist turning his gaze toward a match being played by a couple of fortysomething amateurs.

The season that finished with some stinging defeats at the World Tour Finals in London last month can hardly be considered a bad one by any standards, especially as it ended with Nadal leading Spain to Davis Cup victory over Argentina. But a series of defeats at the hands of Serbia's Novak Djokovic, who took away the Spaniard's Wimbledon and US Open titles, plus the world number-one ranking, have plunged Nadal into a philosophical mood.

"Will I recover my game by January? Maybe not, but I have to get it back by April"

Question. How much did those losses to Djokovic hurt you?

Answer. With each year that passes, one loses a little intensity. The intensity of your faith in yourself, in your concentration, in being positive and believing that things will work out... these things are all in the mind. Over time you lose this a little. Competition burns you out. I have spent seven years in the top two in the world, almost constantly. It's like when they say I get a lot of injuries. I don't get injured a lot.

Q. I was asking about your mind more than your physique.

A. My head was good during the first half of the year, not perfect, because I lacked that little bit extra in those matches against Djokovic. But it was alright: I accepted [the defeats], I went back to work, to fight. But clearly, the standard of my tennis came up a bit short. When your game is on, your mind responds better. I could have been less predictable in my game; I was too predictable at many times in the season. These are the things I have to get right for 2012. Will I recover all that by January? Maybe not, but I have to get it back by April.

Q. The challenge is not just to win matches, but tournaments.

A. I am talking about me winning; not depending on the rest, but on myself. I have realized that this year I won a lot of matches, but too often I was more concerned about what my opponent was doing than myself. Often, I had the feeling that I was not in control of the match.

Q. What do you need to change to beat Djokovic?

A. To go that bit further I need to play inside the baseline and apply more pressure. [In the US Open final] I pressured him at times, whereas before I had the feeling that he was dominating each point. Then it was head to head. It was an extremely hard match. I could win or lose it, but I had to at least push myself to the limit. To get to that point, I have to do that in all the other matches, to be more aggressive and make that my usual level, so I don't then have to try to exceed that. In 2001, there were moments in which I was lacking that bit extra. It's only the second time in my whole career that I have made three Grand Slam finals [winning the French Open against Roger Federer]. You have to appreciate that. I mean, in how many seasons have I reached 10 finals? What's more, Spain ended up winning the Davis Cup. The year was a good one, but the level of expectation, both from my part and externally, is very high. [...] Now I have to get back up to cruising speed, and make it even higher. From Indian Wells all the way to Wimbledon and the London Olympics, that's where I need to get back to my best.