Refreshed Nadal returns out to reclaim No 1 spot

Nadal questioned his motivation after crashing out of the ATP World Tour Finals in London in November although he promptly displayed plenty of heart in helping Spain beat Argentina in the Davis Cup final in Seville.

The world No 2 has frequently tried to downplay his comments, claiming they were exaggerated, and he was quick to emphasize he was ready for battle in Melbourne with the tournament getting under way today.

He said: “What I said was that I played a few matches at the end of the season with less passion than usual. That’s nothing crazy. That happens when you are a little bit more tired than usual.

“I’m here in Australia with big motivation, with big passion. I have tried to enjoy the past few weeks, which I did, and I am happy.

“I am practicing well and enjoying everything. I will try to be ready for tomorrow.”

Nadal won the French Open and reached the final of Wimbledon and the US Open in 2011 but that was not enough to prevent him losing the world No 1 spot to Novak Djokovic, the all-conquering Serbian claiming three majors in a dominant 12 months.

And the Majorcan admits he has some catching up to do.

“Novak is the best because last year he did a fantastic year and is the number one,” he said.

“He deserves to be there but I will fight every moment to try to compete with everybody to give myself a positive chance of victory.

“It’s just the beginning of the season but I will try to improve on a few things.”

Nadal has already announced he will take next month off to rest a nagging shoulder injury but he insisted he was in good shape heading into the season’s opening grand slam event.

“I am just happy to be here to start another season in good condition,” he said.

“I am healthy, that’s the first thing and the most important thing. Without that you cannot think about the following things.

“I am healthy and ready to work hard.”

Nadal plays his first-round clash with American qualifier Alex Kuznetsov today with the pick of the opening day’s matches the clash between home hope Bernard Tomic and experienced Spaniard Fernando Verdasco.

Tomic, 19, won the AAMI Kooyong Classic build-up event, beating world No 8 Mardy Fish in the final, and is oozing self-belief.

He said: “I am ready to go. I have had a good preparation and built up some confidence over the past few weeks and I think it’s going to be an exciting match tomorrow.

“To play Kooyong and to have those matches under my belt and win them all is great.

“Confidence is key before a tournament like this and before playing a player like Fernando.

“He has one of the best forehands but if you keep the ball to his backhand corner he’s not going to hurt you. That’s what I am going to do tomorrow.”

Nadal has levelled criticism at long-time rival Roger Federer by claiming the Swiss is leaving his rivals to question the tennis authorities about the strains of life on tour.

Nadal and Andy Murray have been two of the most vociferous critics of the tour schedule amid fears it has become too demanding of the leading players.

There was talk among players of a possible strike following last year’s US Open, where a host of them abandoned matches due to fitness and injury concerns.

There have been issues on which Federer has spoken out, and during the US Open he stated there were “a whole lot of issues to be sorted out with the Grand Slams and the ITF (International Tennis Federation)”.

But Nadal contends that Federer is not using his influence as forcefully as he might, given his status as the most successful player in the history of men’s tennis.

Nadal told a press conference with Spanish journalists: “I disagree with him.

“His (position) is easy: do not say anything, all positive, I am a ‘gentleman’, others get burned.

“We each have our opinion and maybe he likes the circuit. Me too, I like it, and I think it’s better than most sports. That does not mean you cannot be better and that you should change things that are bad.

“I say a lot of good things about tennis, because thanks to this sport I have had experiences in my life I could never have dreamed of, but to finish your career with pain in all areas of your body is not positive.

“He finishes his career as fresh as a daisy because he is physically privileged, but neither Murray nor (Novak) Djokovic and I are fresh as a daisy.”

Qualifier Jarkko Nieminen recovered from being broken in the opening game to win the Sydney International final with a straight-sets victory over Julien Benneteau.

The Finn’s 6-2 7-5 victory took an hour and 20 minutes as he dominated the opening set, breaking serve three times, following that poor start against his French opponent.

Nieminen forced a match point in the 10th game of the second set at Olympic Park but Benneteau saved that with a forehand winner.

But Nieminen then held serve before breaking his opponent in the 12th game to win the set and the match for what was the second tournament victory of his career.

German qualifier Mona Barthel crushed top seed Yanina Wickmayer to win the Hobart International.

Barthel beat the Belgian 6-1 6-2 in 59 minutes to claim her eighth straight match victory at the tournament. The 21-year-old world number 64 got off to a flying start as she raced into a 4-0 lead and never looked back.