Olympic experience inspires weary Nadal

Wimbledon champion Rafael Nadal has no plans to revel in his impending rise to the top of the world rankings as he prepares for his assault on the Olympic Games gold medal in Beijing.

Nadal arrived in the Chinese capital yesterday and will succeed Roger Federer as world number one on August 18 after dominating the tennis scene throughout the summer.

The 22-year-old ended Federer’s reign at the All England Club just weeks after claiming his fourth French Open crown in a row and, despite failing to add the Cincinnati Masters title to his collection last weekend, he is the favourite for Olympic gold.

“To be number one is a great thing,” said the Spaniard. “For many years I have been battling to achieve this and it would be great, but right now I don’t have any plans to enjoy that.

“I’m going to enjoy competing in the Olympic Games. It’s a very different experience and I want to live with the Olympic experience.”

Nadal lost in the semi-finals of the Cincinnati Masters to Novak Djokovic, bringing to an end a collection of 32 consecutive victories and five straight titles.

But the run has taken its toll on Nadal, who is hoping he can recover and shake off the lingering effects of jetlag in time for Monday’s first round.

“I’ve had practically no rest days,” he said. “I had a week off after Wimbledon, in the US I played well but also a lot of matches so physically I have a few days to recover.

“I’m still jetlagged, there are 12 hours difference coming here but I still have a few days to recover and I hope that by Monday I will be fine and be able to do my best effort.”

Despite the exhaustion, Nadal is looking forward to representing his country and spending time in the unique environment of the athletes’ village while aiming to continue Spain’s summer of sporting success.

“It’s a very, very special experience, unforgettable to be at the Olympic Games and see everybody at the athletes’ village who you only see on television,” he said. “It really is a marvellous experience.

“It’s been a fantastic year for Spain and we will see what happens here. People don’t value or can’t really see the difficulty in achieving these victories.

“We have achieved what we have achieved and we will see what happens here.”