Rafael Nadal admits it would be ‘something special’ to be year-end world number one again
Rafael Nadal has admitted that ending the season as world number one would be ‘something special’ as he gets ready for the Paris Masters.
Regardless of what happens in Paris, Nadal will take the top ranking spot from Novak Djokovic on November 4.
He has often spoken before about how chasing the world number one spot is not a priority for him, but now it’s so close he is determined to take the mantle.
“It’s fantastic,” Nadal told atptour.com ahead of the Paris Masters.
“I prefer to be No. 1 to No. 2 and No. 2 to No. 3. And of course, finishing the year world No. 1 is something special, and I would love to make that happen.”
“I’m super happy with my season. [It was] a tough beginning of the season.
“Then I was able to find a way to be back playing at a very high level of tennis and [to] be in the situation that I am today.
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“After Monte-Carlo [this] was something very difficult to imagine.
“So I’m very proud about the year that I am having and it’s the moment to keep pushing a little bit until then.”
Should Nadal achoeve the year-end world number one, he will tie Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Jimmy Connors on the all-time list with five, just one behind leader Pete Sampras.
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