Nadal happy to be back in his special place

Rafael Nadal seems confident and prepared ahead of his bid for a ninth Roland Garros title.
Nadal has triumphed at the French Open on eight occasions, and his performances at the slam are one of the main reasons for his 'King of Clay' tag. As he finalises his preparations for this year's clay slam, the Spaniard appears to be in good shape both physically and mentally.

"We are here in Roland Garros, and [I'm] just happy to be back in a place that give me so much," he said to reporters on Friday. "It's a very special place for me, and just enjoying the first few days here.  Hopefully the weather will be better."

Nadal was asked about his minor blip in April, where he went the whole month without a title for the first time in almost a decade. His early exits in Monte-Carlo and Barcelona wouldn't have been shocking had he not been so dominant at the tournaments in recent years.

"Not that happy about what I did in Monte Carlo and Barcelona, but that's the sport," he said. His approach appears to be forward-looking, and he insists he's just thinking about Roland Garros now. Even so, Nadal admits that his triumph in Madrid and runner-up finish in Rome have helped his confidence.

"Rome, Monte Carlo, Madrid, Barcelona is past now. We are here in Roland Garros, and the only thing that matters now is have a good practice when I finish with the press. I will practice today, will practice tomorrow, good practice on Sunday, and try to be ready for the competition."

"The dynamic is positive, is true, so that's always important for the confidence.  I felt that in Rome I was able to play with not that nerves, that anxiety that I played in the first two tournaments and some moments in Madrid, too."

"So that's always a positive thing, but now is very important tournament for me. At the end is another tournament, no? And just happy to be here in Roland Garros. Happy to fight for the challenge to play well again here."

Source: http://www.livetennis.com/category/livetennis-news/rafael-nadal-happy-to-be-back-in-his-special-place-at-the-french-open-201405230003/