Nadal up to 4th with Indian Wells victory
Source: Agencies |
March 19, 2013, Tuesday
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RAFAEL Nadal's tournament win at Indian Wells on Sunday has thrust him back into the top four in the ATP world rankings.
The Spaniard dropped out of the elite bracket of players, comprising Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Andy Murray earlier this year as he took seven months out to deal with a recurring knee injury.
Compatriot David Ferrer moved up to fourth place, but Nadal won two claycourt tournaments in South America as he launched his comeback last month and the win at Indian Wells brought him a big haul of points as it is one of the Masters Series events.
Nadal is back to fourth, nudging ahead of Ferrer with Serbia's Djokovic, Federer and Briton Murray still ahead of him. He has withdrawn from the Miami Masters starting this week and will return to action for the European claycourt season.
The Spaniard's pulsating 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory over Juan Martin del Potro in the final of the BNP Paribas Open served as a timely reminder that the claycourt specialist will once again be the player to beat at the French Open starting in late May.
"He's like always, like in the past, he's playing so solid, so strong," purred Argentine del Potro who, while bitterly disappointed after his defeat, felt Nadal was back to his very best.
Nadal was euphoric after winning his third Indian Wells title, having dispatched second-ranked Swiss Federer and sixth-seeded Czech Tomas Berdych along the way.
"That makes an emotional week for me," the 11-time grand slam singles champion smiled after beating 2009 US Open champion del Potro, the seventh seed, in a fluctuating match lasting two hours 29 minutes.
"It's a very important victory for me, winning against the best players of the world on a surface that is good for them. Seriously, it's impossible to have better comeback, no?"
Maria Sharapova defeated Dane Caroline Wozniacki 6-2, 6-2 to win her first title of the year in the women's final between two former top-ranked players.
The Spaniard dropped out of the elite bracket of players, comprising Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Andy Murray earlier this year as he took seven months out to deal with a recurring knee injury.
Compatriot David Ferrer moved up to fourth place, but Nadal won two claycourt tournaments in South America as he launched his comeback last month and the win at Indian Wells brought him a big haul of points as it is one of the Masters Series events.
Nadal is back to fourth, nudging ahead of Ferrer with Serbia's Djokovic, Federer and Briton Murray still ahead of him. He has withdrawn from the Miami Masters starting this week and will return to action for the European claycourt season.
The Spaniard's pulsating 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory over Juan Martin del Potro in the final of the BNP Paribas Open served as a timely reminder that the claycourt specialist will once again be the player to beat at the French Open starting in late May.
"He's like always, like in the past, he's playing so solid, so strong," purred Argentine del Potro who, while bitterly disappointed after his defeat, felt Nadal was back to his very best.
Nadal was euphoric after winning his third Indian Wells title, having dispatched second-ranked Swiss Federer and sixth-seeded Czech Tomas Berdych along the way.
"That makes an emotional week for me," the 11-time grand slam singles champion smiled after beating 2009 US Open champion del Potro, the seventh seed, in a fluctuating match lasting two hours 29 minutes.
"It's a very important victory for me, winning against the best players of the world on a surface that is good for them. Seriously, it's impossible to have better comeback, no?"
Maria Sharapova defeated Dane Caroline Wozniacki 6-2, 6-2 to win her first title of the year in the women's final between two former top-ranked players.
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