Rafael Nadal, accompanied by the event’s Sporting Director, Albert Costa and the President of the Real Club de Tenis Barcelona-1899 Albert Agustí, attended a press conference in Barcelona this morning to explain the reasons behind his decision to withdraw from the 2010 Barcelona Open BancSabadall. Rafa once more blamed poor schedule of the clay court season for withdrawing from this tournament.

“I always planned to play in Barcelona,” said Nadal. “But tennis is not like football, when you know exactly how many matches you will have to plan and when. I didn’t know if I would win Monte Carlo, or lose in the first round. It might not have been the correct decision – I hope that I do not regret it – but I have to do everything that I can to ensure that every time I go on court I am at 100%, in the best condition possible. I don’t think that three weeks of tennis without stopping is the most adequate way to prepare myself.”


Asked how difficult it had been to take the decision not to defend his title, Nadal said, “For me, not being able to play here is a tough blow. I am playing at home, it’s my club and apart from that I have won five consecutive times and would have liked to have the chance to continue. Next year, the conditions will be more favourable, with a week off after Barcelona. I will definitely be back next year, and the calendar will be organised in a manner that will also encourage other players to come.”

Discussing his form so far in 2010, he commented, “The last year was difficult, with a lot of problems. I started this year playing well, and apart from the small problem in Australia, I felt I was playing well enough to have chances to win at all of the tournaments I have entered. I needed the win in Monte Carlo. But with everything that has happened to me, to play for three consecutive weeks, taking into account that we are on clay and the matches tend to last a little longer, would be almost impossible.”

When asked about the actual condition of his knee, Nadal confirmed that he preferred to be cautious rather than to take risks. “Yes, [the withdrawal] was a preventative measure. Luckily last week I played very well. I feel fine right now, but I have had many problems in this last year and can’t afford to take any risks if I want to be in my best possible condition on court. That’s my main objective.”

With the tournament having lost several of it’s stars this year due to injury, several journalists question how the event would be affected, but Nadal saw no reason for concern: “The success of a tournament like the Godó doesn’t depend only on whether or not the world #1 plays, or the #3, or #5. The draw is still very strong; there are a lot of great players here. Hopefully a Spaniard will win, [Juan Carlos] Ferrero is playing very well, [Fernando] Verdasco obviously, and David [Ferrer] as well. Then there is [Robin] Soderling, who is always very difficult to beat.”


(via Barcelona Open BancSabadall)

Rafael Nadal blames poor schedule for withdrawing from Barcelona Open